Semin Caps Season Series in Boston

The Caps and Bruins put on quite a display in Boston, with Washington earning a bit of revenge on the Bruins for its overtime loss a couple of weeks ago as Alexander Semin scored on a long shot from past the blueline just :22 into the extra frame for a 4-3 win.

For the fourth time this season, the top two teams in the Eastern Conference provided another highly entertaining contest. The Caps end up winning the season series 3-0-1, and also shaved a point off Boston's lead in the race for the top seed to eight points. The victory also keeps Washington two points ahead of New Jersey - who throttled the Panthers this afternoon - in the race for the second seed in the East, while the Caps also are close to wrapping up the Southeast Division race with a 15-point edge on the 'Cats with a meeting on tap tomorrow afternoon.

The Caps broke on top 3:36 into the contest, as on an early power play, Nicklas Backstrom deposited a rebound of an Semin shot past Tim Thomas to give Washington a brief lead. However, Boston evened the game up just 1:39 later, as Matt Hunwick was able to sneak in front of Jose Theodore and fired a feed from behind the net past the netminder to square the game.

After that, Thomas and Theodore settled down, both making some nice saves (and getting some decent breaks) to keep the score knotted at one through 20 minutes.

Alex Ovechkin broke the stalemate with his 45th goal of the year, taking a Matt Bradley feed and firing it past Thomas with 8:48 gone in the frame. However, once again, Boston had a quick answer for Washington's lead, as Phil Kessel slipped in past an out-of-position Shaone Morrisonn and squared the game just :18 later.

Once again, the goalies took over, as Brooks Laich couldn't convert a breakaway with 7:21 left in the second, while Theodore was able to stop a tremendous Bruins chance on Scott Thornton in the period's final minute.

Then, early in the third, the Bruins' David Krejci took a hooking penalty on Mike Green, and Tomas Fleischmann made Krejci and the Bruins pay.

Krejci, who won the Jan. 27th meeting between the two teams in overtime with a bad-angle shot that banked off Shaone Morrisonn and past Theodore, could only watch as Fleischmann took the puck at the goal line, and then fired a centering feed that deflected off Dennis Wideman and into the Boston net for a 3-2 Caps lead.

However, for the third time on the afternoon, Boston had an answer.

After the Caps failed to build on the lead with an Eric Fehr breakaway and a power play of their own, the Bruins got some prime chances as Laich and Backstrom took minors down the stretch, forcing Theodore to make some good saves. However, Boston's big defenseman Zdeno Chara finally broke through evened the game with 4:37 to go as he moved down to the point and fired a shot past Theodore.

After a couple of nice chances at both ends to wrap up regulation, the two teams headed for overtime. It certainly wasn't unexpected, as seven of the last 12 meetings have needed to be decided past 60 minutes, and 18 of the last 23 meetings have been one-goal affairs.

Semin ensured that it wouldn't require much additional time, as he notched the game winner just :22 into the frame on an odd goal for an All-Star netminder to give up. Semin would up from an on-ice advertisment near the faceoff dot in the neutral zone, and took a long shot Thomas. Thomas didn't get all of the 70-foot slapshot, and the puck just managed crawled over the goal line for the 4-3 win.

The win gives the Caps seven out of eight possible points in the season series, and keeps Washington's hopes to try and snag the top seed alive.

More importantly, however, it also sets up a chance for the Capitals to deal the knockout blow to the Panthers tomorrow afternoon at Verizon Center, as Washington could hold a 17-point lead with a regulation win over Florida with 19 to play for the 'Cats.