Capitals open with win over Bruins

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Recap: Pittsburgh vs. Washington

Alex Ovechkin had two goals and one assist to help the Washington Capitals double up the Pittsburgh Penguins, 6-3, at Mellon Arena.

Mike Knuble and Tomas Fleischmann both registered a goal and an assist for the Capitals, who have won five straight and lead the Eastern Conference with 70 points. Jose Theodore made 35 saves in the win.

"This week has been good for our confidence, especially beating these guys in their building," Theodore said.

Ovechkin hat trick leads Caps to 4-3 win

Alex Ovechkin got his first playoff hat trick. Sidney Crosby matched him, but his was too little, too late.

Ovechkin broke open a tie game with a pair of goals less than 3 minutes apart in the third period Monday night, leading the Washington Capitals to a 4-3 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins and a 2-0 series lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Ovechkin followed a one-timer from the left circle on a power play with 7:07 remaining with a slap shot from between the circles with 4:38 left. Both times he celebrated by launching his body into the glass, the second time as red hats flooded the Verizon Center rink.

Rangers get the jump on the Capitals

With the score tied in the third period, the New York Rangers did what they do best -- kill off a power play.

Then Markus Naslund popped out of the penalty box and set up the winning goal.

Naslund fed Brandon Dubinsky, who made a move that left Jeff Schultz sprawled on the ice and beat goalie Jose Theodore inside the near post with 8:17 remaining, lifting the visiting Rangers to a 4-3 victory over Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals on Wednesday night in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference series.

Recap: Boston vs. Washington

Alex Ovechkin got a good start to the season as he had two goals and an assist to lead the Washington Capitals to a 4-1 win over the Boston Bruins in the season-opener at TD Garden.

Ovechkin won his second consecutive Hart Award as the MVP last season and his 56 goals were tops in the league. He finished the 2008-09 season with 110 points and was just three behind Pittsburgh's Evgeni Malkin for the Art Ross.

Brooks Laich scored twice, Nicklas Backstrom had three assists and Alexander Semin added two helpers for the Capitals, who won the Southeast Division for the second straight season in 2008-09, but fell to the Cup-champion Penguins in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Jose Theodore gave up just one goal on 20 shots in the win.

Recap: Washington vs. Toronto

Alexander Semin scored a pair of goals and dished out an assist, as the Washington Capitals built an early lead and held on to beat the Toronto Maple Leafs, 6-4, at Verizon Center.

Alex Ovechkin had a goal and two assists for the reigning Southeast Division champion Capitals, who were coming off a season-opening 4-1 victory over the Bruins on Thursday.

Brendan Morrison and Brooks Laich had a goal and an assist apiece. Mike Knuble added a score for Washington, which got 27 saves from Semyon Varlamov in the win.