CAPITALS AGAIN HAUNTED IN THIRD PERIOD -- LOSE 4-3 TO SENATORS IN OVERTIME

For such a talented Washington Capitals team, it has felt heartbreaking to watch them battling injuries, struggling to hang onto leads scored before the third period and then simply floundering.

The third period has haunted the Capitals, and last night the third against the Ottawa Senators was no different. They started the period with a 3-1 lead, but the Senators outshot them and took the 4-3 overtime win.

Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau lamented, "This was a total collapse by 20 guys. I don't know how to sugarcoat it. We had total control of the game after two periods. They didn't even want to be a part of it. They looked like they wanted to go home."

The Senators scored twice in the third for the tie -- and then Mike Fisher got a puck past Semyon Varlamov in overtime to seal the win for his team.

The Caps had outshot Ottawa 25-15 in the first two periods, but then the Senators stepped up and took control with 18-3.

So what might have been an evening to celebrate -- with Jay Beagle scoring his first careeer NHL goal, turned into an evening with heads lowered and the repeated questioning of how they had let the third period beat them again.

The other Capitals goals were scored by Chris Clark and Brendan Morrison. Sphere: Related Content

WEARY CAPS LOSE TO MAPLE LEAFS, BUT GOALTENDER VARLAMOV IMPRESSES

The Washington Capitals were skating weary last night -- and handed the lowly Maple Leafs a 2-1 victory.

Caps goaltender Semyon Varlamov, who stopped 38 of 39 shots, was a bright spot in the game, -- and Alex Ovechkin moved into a tie for second place in the NHL in goals by scoring his 16th.

"We looked pretty tired," coach Bruce Boudreau lamented to the Washington Times. "Sometimes it is a bad one point and sometimes there is a good one point. I thought we were lucky to come away with one."

The team was missing seven regular skaters -- Alexander Semin, Mike Knuble, Boyd Gordon, Tom Poti, Shaone Morrisonn,Quintin Laing, Milan Jurcina. And they were playing the second in-a-row night.

But the Maple Leafs were in control during much of the playing time, and the score might have been worse for the Caps if Varlamov had not been so impressively sharp.

And even though Ovechkin scored the Cap's lone goal, he opined that he was not happy with how he played. "We didn't move our legs [including] me," he explained. "I'm not happy how I play today. I'm not happy how my line play today. We score one goal, but we have to score more. We have more ice time than everybody, so we have to use it. We had a couple of chances on the power play, we don't score."

This was the Maple Leafs first in six games. Niklas Hagman, who had scored in regulation, beat Semyon Varlamov with a back-hander.

With a day off, the Capitals next play the Senators on Monday. Sphere: Related Content

OVECHKIN "FEELING A LOT BETTER TODAY"

What better gift could the Washington Capitals give injured Alex Ovechkin than a higher number in the team's win column?

And it seems obvious that this is just the 'get well gift' that Coach Bruce Boudreau and Ovi's teammates want to give to him.

Ovechkin, who suffered an upper-body strain -- definitely will not be playing when the Caps face the New Jersey Devils Wednesday.

But, still, Boudreau thinks that the team can win despite Ovi being sidelined. It will just require his teammates to think smart and play hard -- will require some good defense. With Ovi on the sidelines, Boudreau explained that is like giving up one goal in a game.

"He's feeling better today, feeling a whole lot better," said Boudreau. "I was really excited about that. I don't know how much better a lot better is, but when he's telling me he felt a lot better today that's a positive sign. I think he's getting bored not practicing already."

Of course, Ovechkin is listed as week to week, and it is unknown when he will be well enough to be cleared to return to the ice and game play.

"We want to make certain that when he does step on the ice, there is no chance that he will hurt that same injury again," said Boudreau. Sphere: Related Content

CAPITALS' COACH HOPES OVECHKIN WILL NOT BE SIDELINED FOR MORE THAN TWO WEEKS

After practice on Tuesday, Washington Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau expressed hope that his team's star winger Alex Ovechkin will not be sidelined for more than two weeks.

Ovechkin was listed as week to week after being checked out following an upper-body strain, it was reported. And he is definitely not expected to play on Wednesday in NJ.

While Capitals management and Ovi's teammates lament playing without Ovechkin, they are adamant that they can win without him on the ice.

"Offensively, you cannot rely on one guy all the time," said Boudreau, "but you are taking a full goal a game out of your lineup. There is no getting around the fact that we're going to miss him. He is the best in the world." Ovechkin has scored 14 goals in 14 games.

In order to win without Ovechkin, Boudreau said that the team will need to shore up their defense. Sphere: Related Content