Washington Capitals

Canadiens' Glen Metropolit scores on José Theodore during the second period on Wednesday night. Dave Sidaway, The Gazette

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AUDIO: Jacques Martin | Andrei Markov | Tom Pyatt | Tomas Plekanec | Carey Price | Sergei Kostitsyn

• At a Glance: It was a night of firsts at the Bell Centre on Wednesday night as the Canadiens defeated the Washington Capitals 6-5 in overtime. It was Washington's first loss in 15 games, Tom Pyatt recorded his first NHL point with an assist in the first period and then scored his first NHL goal in the second period, and David Desharnais got his first NHL point with an assist in the second period. It was also Carey Price's first win since Jan. 14 against the Dallas Stars. The Canadiens got goals from Scott Gomez and Pyatt on Michal Neuvirth, who was replaced by José Theodore less than six minutes into the second period for an uknown reason. Theodore was beaten by Glen Metropolit, on the power play, Maxim Lapierre 12 seconds later and then Tomas Plekanec with a minute to play in the second period. Brooks Laich with three, Nicklas Backstrom and Mike Green scored for the Capitals, who erased a 5-2 deficit to force overtime when Laich scored his third goal with only 19 seconds to play. Price could not be faulted on the first three goals, but Laich's second goal should have been stopped, but Price finished with 33 saves. Plekanec scored the game winner with seconds left to play in overtime on a pass from Sergei Kostitsyn, his third of the game.

• Key Moments: Late in the first period, Josh Gorges was struck in the back of the head by a slap shot from the point. Gorges lay motionless on the ice for several moments, but would eventually leave the ice under his own steam. He was bleeding severely from a gash to the head, but the good news is that he was in the room when the media entered after the game.

• What It Means: The Canadiens improved to 29-26-6 for 64 points, moving up to sixth place in the Eastern Conference.

• What's Next: Montreal has back-to-back games against the Philadelphia Flyers on Friday and Saturday before the Olympic break.

Canadiens forward Andrei Kostitsyn takes his surgically repaired left knee out for a test drive this morning in Brossard, supervised by head athletic therapist Graham Rynbend (background).
Marie-France Coallier

• AUDIO: Jacques Martin English & French | Jaroslav Spacek | Tom Pyatt

Carey Price gets the start tonight, his first since a Jan. 27 loss to Tampa Bay. Price is 1-1-3 lifetime vs. the Washington Capitals, with a 3.30 average and .896 save percentage. This season, Price is 1-1-1 with a .910 save percentage against the Caps.

Defenceman Paul Mara didn't skate this morning; all other healthy hands were on deck for a brief morning skate at the Bell Sports Complex in Brossard.

Expected lines for head coach Jacques Martin tonight (gotta love the third line – three centres!):

Mathieu Darche - Tomas Plekanec - Sergei Kostitsyn
Tom Pyatt - Scott Gomez - Brian Gionta
Maxim Lapierre - Ben Maxwell - David Desharnais
Travis Moen - Glen Metropolit - Matt D'Agostini

Andrei Kostitsyn was on the ice alone with head athletic therapist Graham Rynbend about 90 minutes before the scheduled start of the morning skate, then again after practice. Nothing demanding, but some gentle flexibility and range of motion work. It was AK46's first time on skates since having had knee surgery in early January.

• CAPITALS AUDIO: Montage of winning streak | Alexander Ovechkin on playing in Canada | José Theodore | Mike Green on Ovechkin | Brooks Laich

Alexander Ovechkin, José Theodore and their Washington Capitals, on a 14-game winning streak, are at the Bell Centre tonight to take on the Canadiens.

I'll be at the Habs' morning skate in Brossard, which begins at 11 am, and will file updates and audio here and on Twitter.

From our old, young friend Ben Raby in Washington, some excellent Capitals notes. Audio of Caps recorded after Tuesday practice is courtesy of Ben, too, provided with our thanks.

The Canadiens return to practice today after having had a day off – the players, if not management.

An 11 am practice in Brossard will begin to set the table for tomorrow night's formidable challenge, i.e., the visit of the Washington Capitals, they of the 14-game winning streak.

Updates to follow from Pat Hickey, who will be at practice today and no doubt will have the reaction of players about yesterday's resignation of general manager Bob Gainey.

Capitals' Alex Ovechkin (right) collides with Canadiens' Max Pacioretty during the second period Tuesday night. Jim Young, Reuters

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• At a Glance: After winning six of seven games during a long road trip, the Canadiens have now lost two straight after a 4-2 loss to the Washington Capitals on Tuesday night. And has been the case often this season, the Canadiens were badly outshot by a 43-29 margin. After a scoreless first period, Tomas Fleischmann scored on a power play with a perfectly placed shot. Josh Gorges got that one back on a lucky bounce to tie it 1-1 14:03 into the second period, but the Capitals scored twice before the period was over. Eric Fehr made it 2-1 15:45 into the period and Alexander Semin scored Washington's third goal at 16:21. Benoit Pouliot scored his fifth of the season - third with the Canadiens - on the power play to make it 3-1 11:10 into the third period, but the Capitals would not be caught on this night. Semin scored his second of the game with two minutes to play with a blistering wrist shot that eluded Carey Price, who made 39 saves. At the other end of the ice, Michal Neuvirth was far less occupied, but still made 24 saves.

• Key Moments: Less than two minutes after tying the game 1-1, Fehr scored the second Capitals goal and took the wind out of Montreal's sails. After two periods, Montreal had only 13 shots on net.

• What It Means: The Canadiens remain winless in 2010. Montreal saw its record drop to 21-21-3 and they remain in 8th spot in the Eastern Conference with 45 points.

• What's Next: The Canadiens host the Florida Panthers on Thursday and the New Jersey Devils on Saturday.

Canadiens goalie Carey Price makes a save on Capitals' David Steckel during the first period Saturday night. John Mahoney, The Gazette

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AUDIO: Jacques Martin | Jaro Spacek | Mike Cammalleri | Roman Hamrlik

• At a Glance: Things didn't look good early on for the Canadiens Saturday night as the Washington Capitals took a 2-0 lead midway through the first period. But as has been the case for the Canadiens lately, they battled back and had a 3-2 lead with 11 seconds to go before the Capitals tied it and eventually won it 4-3 in a shootout. Niklas Backstrom scored the winner in the shooout, the only one of six shooters to score in the bonus format. Eric Fehr and Alexander Ovechkin opened the scoring for the Capitals, with Ovechkin's goal coming on a bullet of a shot that Carey Price had no chance to stop. Jaroslav Spacek, Tomas Plekanec and Travis Moen scored for the Canadiens, with the Spacek and Moen goals coming on the power play. Fehr scored the tying goal during a 6-on-4 power play in the dying seconds of regulation time.

• Key Moments: Early in the second period, Price made two great saves on Ovechkin to keep the Canadiens in the game and set the table for the comeback that allowed them to at least earn a point against one the NHL's top teams. Price ended the game with 20 saves, while his counterpart, Semyon Varlamov stopped 21 Montreal shots.

• What It Means: The Canadiens have taken 8 out of a possible 12 points in their last six games and lost for the second straight time in the shootout, dropping their record to 12-12-2. The Canadiens have earned 3 out of a possible 4 points against the Capitals so far this season.

• What's Next: The Canadiens now embark on a tough month of December that sees them play 17 games, the majority of which are on the road. Up first are the Maple Leafs on Tuesday, the Sabres in Buffalo on Thursday and the Boston Bruins in town for Dec. 4, the game that will wrap up the team's centennial celebrations.

Michael Cammalleri (background) and Josh Gorges (back to camera) exchange words at practice today, separated by teammate Maxim Lapierre. Cammy's day wasn't done; see the photo below.
Marie-France Coallier, Gazette

• AUDIO: Michael Cammalleri on the scrap; on physical game | Josh Gorges | Carey Price on Ovechkin | Matt D'Agostini | Jacques Martin

The highlight of practice in Brossard today was a pushing and shoving match between teammates Mike Cammalleri and Josh Gorges with Maxim Lapierre serving as a peacemaker. 

"We talked about having an intense practice," said Gorges, while Camalleri dismissed the incident as "part of the game."

The good news on the injury front was the return of defenceman Jaroslav Spacek.

And Matt D'Agostini practised with his teammates for the first time since he was decked by Chicago's Andrew Ladd on Oct. 30. He's not suffering any more concusssion-like symptoms but he won't face the Washington Capitals tomorrow because he's still suffering from a knee injury – the result of the same collision with Ladd. 

Spacek, Ryan O'Byrne and Roman Hamrlik are all wearing extra protection over their skates.

Hal Gill, who has resumed skating but is still out with a broken foot, will also wear the Kevlar guards when he returns.   

Even on his back, Canadiens forward Travis Moen enjoyed a fine game against Washington.
Mitchell Layton, NHLI via Getty Images

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• PREGAME AUDIO: Jacques Martin | O'Byrne | Spacek
• POSTGAME AUDIO: Mike Cammalleri | Andrei Kostitsyn | Carey Price | Tomas Plekanec | Jacques Martin

• AT A GLANCE: Washington superstar Alexander Ovechkin was pretty much a non-factor tonight. And full credit for that to the Canadiens, whose attention to Ovi was a good part of the reason for Montreal's thrilling 3-2 victory over the Capitals at the Verizon Center. A brilliant game for defencemen Jaroslav Spacek and Roman Hamrlik, forwards Travis Moen and Tomas Plekanec and, again, goalie Carey Price.

 A dimmer note: forward Scott Gomez left the game in the third period for undisclosed reasons. We're bound to learn more Saturday morning.

• SUMMARY: Washington's Eric Fehr scored the game's only first-period goal, cashing a 25-foot slapper past Price, despite the Habs enjoying a 14-7 edge in shots. The Canadiens tied it early in the second when Moen deflected a point shot from Roman Hamrlik past Capitals goalie Michal Neuvirth, then took the lead on Plekanec's conversion of some fine work by his linemates, Andrei Kostitsyn and Max Pacioretty. The Caps certainly turned the tide with their 11-4 shots lead, sending the teams to the dressing rooms after 40 minutes with 18 apiece. The Caps gave the Habs all they could handle, but Montreal bagged a power-play off the stick of Michael Cammalleri with about 7 1/2 minutes to play to provide a bit of breathing room. But Washington's Brendan Morrison got inside Habs coverage with two minutes and change remaining to make it 3-2 and the Habs withstood a furious Caps attack with Maxim Lapierre taking a late penalty to hold on for the win.

• WHAT IT MEANS: The victory was the Canadiens' second straight, including Tuesday's 3-2 home-ice shootout win over Carolina. It was just the third victory of the year in regulation time for Montreal, which pulled back to .500 with a record of 11-11-0.

• WHAT'S NEXT: The Habs returned home immediately after the game and Saturday night will entertain the Detroit Red Wings, the currently-underachieving 2009 Stanley Cup finalist, at the Bell Centre.

Friday night will be our second live chat on Habsinsideout, starting at 7 p.m. For this one, I will have some help from Chris Aung-Thwin in moderating comments. Once again, keep it clean and enjoy the chat, it was a huge success last time.

Canadiens' Mathieu Schneider watches the puck sail past his head as he defends against Capitals' Alex Ovechkin Wednesday night in Washington. REUTERS/Joe Giza 

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AUDIO:  Guy Carbonneau  Carey Price  Mathieu Schneider  Tomas Plekanec

It was a much better effort, but the Canadiens still came out on the short end of the stick in a 4-3 shootout loss to the Washington Capitals on Wednesday night. Alexander Semin and Niklas Backstrom beat Carey Price in the shootout, while the Canadiens failed to beat José Theodore.

It was a game the Canadiens had in hand with only three minutes to play thanks to three power-play goals in their first game since the shakeup by general manager Bob Gainey on Tuesday. Gainey had to like what he saw of his team despite the loss as the Canadiens responded well against the Capitals with Alex Kovalev watching the game from Montreal.

It was also the first game with the Canadiens in more than 13 years for Mathieu Schneider, who collected an assist in his debut, giving him 200 career points with the Canadiens.

And for the first time in a long time, the Canadiens put in a solid effort the entire game. And Price, who reverted to his white pads, looked like the Price of old stopping 32 of 35 shots.

Christopher Higgins opened the scoring after Mike Green was sent off for delay of game after throwing the puck into the crowd. Only five seconds after the penalty, Higgins pounced on the rebound of an Andrei Markov shot and put the puck top shelf over José Theodore, who was slow to get into position.

The Capitals came back with two quick goals, however, and it looked like it might be another rough night for the Canadiens. But the Canadiens would battle back and the two teams delivered an exciting game.

Mike Komisarek (left) and Sergei Kostitsyn celebrate the latter's game-winning goal over Washington.
Allen McInnis, Gazette

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PAT HICKEY
The Gazette

Sergei Kostitsyn felt he owed something to his teammates. But the debt was marked paid in full tonight when Kostitsyn the Younger scored with 21.2 seconds remaining in regulation to give the Canadiens 5-4 win over the Washington Capitals.

“I thought I had a debt to pay,” said Kostitsyn, who was in the penalty box when Michael Nylander scored at 12:21 to knot the game at 4-4.

Kostitsyn’s first game-winning goal was an unassisted effort after he tied up Washington defenceman Milan Jurcina in front of the net.

“The defenceman didn’t know where the puck was and I just shot it,” said Kostitsyn. “I got knocked down and I was surprised to see the puck go through the goaltender’s legs.”

Capitals' Alexander Ovechkin rumbles with Canadiens' Tom Kostopoulos (top) and Josh Gorges.
Christinne Muschi, Reuters

AUDIO: Guy Carbonneau  Alex Kovalev I and II  Ben Maxwell  Steve Bégin  Patrice Brisebois  Jaroslav Halak

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A seven-game Canadiens homestand that got off to a wonderful start ended with a loss tonight, the Washington Capitals scrapping to a 2-1 victory at the Bell Centre.

The Habs (16-8-5), again powerless on their power-play, went 4-2-1 over the longest homestand in team history. They had opened the stretch 3-0.

Tremendous Canadiens pressure in the late stages of the third period brought the Habs very close to breaking a 1-1 tie, but it was Michael Nylander who wound up scoring on a fluky goal, caroming one in off the pad of Montreal goalie Jaroslav Halak. It was Nylander's first goal in 27 games.

Habs defenceman Patrice Brisebois had the score at 15:25 of the second period, bagging his third of the season. Washington's Niklas Backstrom had put the Capitals on top at 10:19 of the first, nine seconds into a power play.

Capitals' Alexander Ovechkin sends Canadiens defenceman Ryan O'Byrne flying along the boards.
Joe Giza, Reuters

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AUDIO:   • Kostopoulos  • Halak  • Higgins  • Carbo

The Canadiens managed to keep Washington Capitals superstar Alexander Ovechkin bottled up from in front of their net for almost 44 minutes tonight.

But then Ovechkin got loose in the Montreal corner and scored his 13th of the season – it was his 17th point in 13 games lifetime against the Habs – from an angle so sharp that it would have dazzled your high-school geometry teacher.

That goal was the second of the night for the Caps, who went on to earn a 3-0 victory over Montreal at the Verizon Center.

Washington goalie José Theodore – remember him? – was excellent when called upon to earn the shutout, making 28 saves his first whitewash of the season and 27th of his career. Theodore's Canadiens counterpart, Jaroslav Halak, also made several outstanding saves among his 27 on the night and had no chance on two of the three shots that beat him; he'd like another look at Ovechkin's, surely.

Alex Tanguay was undergoing therapy today for a neck injury suffered when he was hit hard by Detroit's Brad Stuart last night.
Dave Sandford, NHLI via Getty Images

Forward Alex Tanguay and defenceman Josh Gorges are both question marks for tomorrow night's game against the Washington Capitals.

Tanguay left Wednesday night's game in Detroit after being checked by Brad Stuart early in the first period. He suffered a neck injury and was undergoing therapy today.

Gorges also skipped practice to get treatment for a knee injury. He took a Nicklas Lidstrom shot off the knee and had an x-ray after the game. 

Alex Kovalev also skipped  practice for what the team described as a therapy day.

The last player to take a therapy day was Guillaume Latendresse and he's missed the past three games with a shoulder injury.  He practiced today and is expected to play tomorrow.

Alexander Ovechkin celebrates one his four goals on Thursday night.
Getty Images

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The Canadiens might have stolen a point on Thursday night in Washington, but Alexander Ovechkin stole the show. Ovechkin scored four goals, including the game winner in overtime as the Caps avenged their 4-0 defeat in Montreal two days ago with a 5-4 victory.

The Canadiens were able to overcome deficits of 3-0 and 4-2 to grab a point, but they had no answer for Ovechkin, who also assisted on Viktor Kozlov’s goal in the second period, giving him a five-point night. Ovechkin now has 43 goals on the season, tops in the NHL.