Lucky 13: Caps overcome Thrashers, blizzard to extend streak

By Bud L. Ellis

The Washington Capitals’ historic win streak reached a whole new level Friday night: even Mother Nature is powerless against the hottest team in the NHL.

With a blizzard swirling outside the Verizon Center, the Caps continued to bury the competition. Down early 1-0 against the Atlanta Thrashers, the Caps once again cranked up their high-octane offense and pulled away, extending their franchise-record win streak to 13 with a 5-2 victory.

Washington (40-12-6, 86 points) continues to win at a historic pace, extending the NHL’s longest win streak since the New Jersey Devils won 13 in a row in the 2000-01 season. A win against Pittsburgh at home Sunday would give the Caps the league’s longest streak since the 1992-93 Penguins reeled off 17 straight wins.

The victory keeps Washington 12 points ahead of the Devils in the Eastern Conference. Ironically, Friday marked the Devils’ first game with Ilya Kovalchuk, the star winger traded from Atlanta to the Devils the day before.

Perhaps boosted by the departure of the constant Kovalchuk rumors, the Thrashers came out shooting and swinging against the Caps. But Michal Neuvirth, recalled from Hershey earlier in the day, was equal to the task, making 43 saves.

And, per the script they’ve rolled out time and time again during the win streak, the Caps got plenty of offense. Alex Ovechkin tied the game at 1-1 at the 13:41 mark of the first period, his league-leading 39th goal of the season. Washington took the lead for keeps on Nicklas Backstrom’s 25th of the season at 4:31 of the second period.

The Caps then put it away early in the third. Brooks Laich fed Alexander Semin on a two-on-one off an Atlanta turnover at the 3:52 mark to make it 3-1. Another Atlanta turnover led to another Washington goal 68 seconds later, Jason Chimera finished a three-on-one breakaway for a 4-1 lead.

Mike Green, playing for the first time since returning from a three-game suspension, added an empty netter to close the scoring.

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Saturday, February 6, 2010 at 8:38 am by bud

Tags: Alex Ovechkin, Alexander Semin, Atlanta Thrashers, Brooks Laich, Ilya Kovalchuk, Jason Chimera, Michal Neuvirth, Mike Green, National Hockey League, New Jersey Devils, Nicklas Backstrom, Pittsburgh Penguins, Verizon Center, Washington Capitals

Caps cruise to seventh straight victory

By Bud L. Ellis

Just 65 seconds into Tuesday’s game, the Washington Capitals already were ahead. Twenty minutes in, the Caps enjoyed a 4-1 advantage.

There simply is no slowing down this team. Not right now, as the New York Islanders experienced the hard way. Washington rode that fast start to its seventh straight victory, a 7-2 rout of the Isles that featured two goals from Alexander Semin, and a goal and an assist from John Erskine and Jason Chimera.

Washington improves to 10-2 in January, and pushes its Eastern Conference leading record to 34-12-6, good for 74 points and a five-point lead over second-place New Jersey.

Ahead 2-1 on a Brendan Morrison goal just 1:05 into the contest and a Semin tally nearly four minutes later, the Caps pushed down the accelerator in the final 1:47 of the first period. Mike Knuble and Semin both scored in that stretch to make it 4-1 after a period.

Erskine scored in the second – his first goal since Jan. 19, 2008 – at 2:36 of the second. Chimera scored later in the second and Brooks Laich closed the scoring in the third.

Jose Theodore earned the win in goal, but left with a lower-body injury after two periods. The Caps say he is day-to-day, and Michal Neuvirth played a flawless third.

The Caps now return home to close out January with a three-game homestand, starting Wednesday against Anaheim.

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Wednesday, January 27, 2010 at 5:52 am by bud

Tags: Alexander Semin, Anaheim Ducks, Brendan Morrison, Brooks Laich, Jason Chimera, John Erskine, Jose Theodore, Michal Neuvirth, Mike Knuble, National Hockey League, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, Washington Capitals