Capitals Drop the Panthers 5-2 for Fourth Straight Win

Semyon Varlamov made 31 saves and the Capitals had goals from Mike Knuble, Jason Chimera, Sean Collins, Matt Hendricks and Alex Ovechkin to beat the Florida Panthers 5-2, Wednesday night. The Capitals now lead the Eastern Conference by four points with one game remaining in the season.

The Capitals clinched their fourth consecutive Southeast Division Championship Tuesday night in Toronto and coach Bruce Boudreau sat a few veteran players Wednesday. Alexander Semin missed his second game in a row while Scott Hannan and Jason Arnott also had the night off.

The suddenly surging Washington power-play gave them the lead early in the first period. Knuble netted his 24th goal of the season just over a minute into the game. Brooks Laich brought the puck over the blue line and passed it to Knuble in the low slot. He tapped it past Scott Clemmensen for his 13th point in as many games (nine goals, four assists). Ovechkin picked up the secondary assist.

Knuble now has 13 goals in just over the last two months, including four in his last four games counting Wednesday night. He only had 11 in the first four months of the season.

"He's got to get those old bones going, it takes a little time," said head coach Bruce Boudreau jokingly after the game. "He will be the first one to tell you he is a better second half player. Some people are. There isn’t an explanation for it.”

Chimera added a second power-play goal late in the period from nearly the same spot when Nicklas Backstrom found him from behind the net. It was his 10th goal of the season from Backstrom and Laich. The Capitals have scored five goals in their last three games on just nine opportunities (55.6%).

The Capitals led by two after the first period despite trailing in shots 18-6.

"We didn't play the way we wanted to in the first period," Chimera said after the game. "We were lucky to be up two-nothing. [Varlamov] played really good for us."

Ovechkin added another assist in the second period when he stole a pass in the defensive zone. He skated down the ice and drew the Florida defenders over to him, leaving the trailing man untouched. That man was recent call-up Collins. Ovechkin gave him the puck and his wrister found its way into the net for his second career goal. He scored for the Caps Jan. 1, 2009 against the Tampa Bay Lightning. That goal was also assisted by Ovechkin.

Hendricks added his ninth goal of the season in the third period to tie his career high set last season with the Colorado Avalanche.

The Panthers ruined Semyon Varlamov's shutout bid when David Booth struck on the power-play with about six minutes to play. Mike Santorelli then brought the game to within two less than five minutes later.

Ovechkin scored the empty net goal with 12 seconds remaining to ice the game. It was his 32nd goal of the season.

The Capitals have one game remaining in the regular season when they travel to Florida for a rematch with the Panthers on Saturday night. The team can clinch the number one overall seed Friday night if the Philadelphia Flyers lose in regulation to the Buffalo Sabres. If not, they can take the top spot with a win or overtime loss against Florida.

"We’re prepared for Saturday’s game and after that, we’ll do a little scoreboard watching to find out who we’re going to play," said Brooks Laich after the game. "Monday and Tuesday we’ll have some solid practices and ramp it up for Wednesday or Thursday, whenever it is."

The Capitals could potentially play the Carolina Hurricanes, New York Rangers, Buffalo Sabres or Montreal Canadiens in the first round of the playoffs which will start at Verizon Center next week.

Additional Notes

- Mike Green was cleared to play three weeks ago, but the team has been cautious with him to avoid another injury. He is expected to return to the lineup on Saturday for his first game since Feb. 25. He was first injured when he took a puck to the side of the head against Pittsburgh on Feb. 6. He missed seven games and returned against the New York Rangers Feb. 25, but was injured again when he was hit high by New York's David Stepan. He was believed to have a concussion, as was reported by many members of the media, but the Capitals never confirmed what the exact injury was.

- The Capitals finish their home schedule of 2010-11 with a record of 25-8-8. They lead the NHL in winning percentage on home ice and least regulation losses on home ice. They lead the league in home wins over the past three seasons with 84.