Martin St. Louis and Nikita Alexeev scored 22
seconds apart during a three-goal second period that carried the
Tampa Bay Lightning past the Washington Capitals 6-4 on Saturday
night.
Alexeev had two goals, and Vincent Lecavalier, Andreas Karlsson
and Brad Richards also scored for Tampa Bay, which has won three of
four. The six goals are the most scored by the Lightning this year.
Alexander Semin, Mike Green, Brian Sutherby and Alexader Ovechkin
scored for the Capitals, who had claimed points in five straight
games. Washington had been unbeaten (2-0-1) at home.
Playing their first game without injured centre Ryan Craig, the
Lightning spread out the offence, a strategy that helped compensate
for the absence of their leading goal-scorer. Craig sustained a
sprained right knee in Thursday's game against Philadelphia and will
miss four weeks.
Trailing 2-1 early in the second period, Tampa Bay took control
on goals by St. Louis and Alexeev.
St. Louis had his second goal of the season on a wraparound,
scoring at 3:10. Just 22 seconds later, Alexeev put the Lightning up
3-2, whistling a wrist shot from center point past Olie Kolzig.
After failing on three consecutive power plays midway through the
second, Tampa Bay went ahead by two goals at 19:01, when Karlsson
tapped in the rebound of Dmitry Afanasenkov's shot.
The Lightning took a 1-0 lead 5:51 into the game on a
short-handed goal by Lecavalier, who converted a long, lead pass
from Nolan Pratt. Semin tied it 48 seconds later bulling through
three defenders before pushing the puck into the goal.
At 16:07, Mike Green surprised Tampa Bay goalie Marc Denis with a
knuckling drive from the top of the slot, giving the Capitals a 2-1
lead.
Midway through the third period, Alexeev scored his second goal,
tipping in Dan Boyle's shot, to make it 5-2.
Sutherby struck with 7:22 left, his first goal of the year, but
29 seconds later, Richards beat Washington's Ben Clymer to a loose
puck along the boards and restored Tampa Bay's three-goal lead.
Ovechkin converted on a power play at the left post with 3:57 to
go.
Notes: C Alexeev has points in five straight games, a career
high. ... RW Boyd Gordon and D Bryan Muir were healthy scratches for
the Capitals.
