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WASHINGTON – Three goals from Alex Ovechkin. Two feet of snow on the ground. One big comeback against a detested rival, with punches and name-calling added for good measure.
The biggest number of all: 14, the length of a winning streak topped by only two other teams in NHL history.
What a Super Sunday it was for the Washington Capitals, who got a hat trick from their two-time reigning league MVP and made up a three-goal deficit to beat Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-4 in overtime.
“It was what people pay to see, when the superstars shine,” Washington coach Bruce Boudreau said.
“There’s tension, and there’s excitement, and there’s physical play, and there’s passion on both sides. That’s what hockey is all about.”
Ovechkin’s three-goal burst gave him a league-high 42, pulling away from Crosby after the Pittsburgh center had tied him at 39 by scoring a pair in the first period.
The robust crowd that braved atrocious travel conditions went delirious and threw dozens of red hats on the ice when Ovechkin tied the game with 8:54 to play, completing a comeback from a 4-1 second-period deficit.
The celebration reached another level when Mike Knuble poked in the rebound 2:49 into overtime after Ovechkin’s shot hit the post during a Capitals power play.
Washington got the man advantage when Brooks Orpik was sent off for high sticking Alexander Semin, a call that prompted Orpik to call Semin “a baby.” The assist gave Ovechkin a league-leading 86 points.
“Ovie was crazy. He was awesome. He took the team on his back and he carried us,” said Eric Fehr, who scored Washington’s other goal. “That’s what we needed, and he was wonderful.”
Washington’s winning streak ties the 1929-30 Boston Bruins for third longest in league history and is three shy of the record of 17, set by the Penguins from March 9-April 10, 1993.
Want more numbers? The Capitals have set a franchise record with 11 consecutive home wins – the 1999-00 team had 10 in a row.
Goaltender Jose Theodore (31 saves) extended his personal-best winning streak to 10, tying the franchise mark set by Pat Riggin in 1983-84.
Also noteworthy: 74 minutes in penalties, including four misconduct calls.
Ovechkin threw probably the best punch, knocking Kris Letang to the ice and jumping on top of the Penguins defenseman, a bit of aggression that was deemed worthy of just a roughing penalty.
The final infractions were whistled against Orpik, who lashed out at Semin for overacting to get the high-sticking call in overtime.
BRUINS 3, CANADIENS 0: In Montreal, Tuukka Rask made 36 saves for his third shutout, Marco Sturm scored twice and Boston ended a 10-game losing streak.
Boston won for the first time since a 2-1 shootout victory over San Jose on Jan. 14 and avoided tying the longest losing streak in franchise history set by the Bruins in their first season, 1924-25.
Rask, who recorded his fourth career shutout, made a number of big stops in the second period when Montreal outshot Boston 15-3.
The Bruins scored a pair of goals 2:24 apart late in the first, including Adam McQuaid’s first NHL goal and Sturm’s first of two with 3.2 seconds remaining.
Sturm scored again midway through the third.
