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Caps shoot for 2-0 lead over Rangers in East quarters

Apr 15, 2011 - 3:11 PM (Sports Network) - The top-seeded Washington Capitals needed overtime to knock off the New York Rangers in Game 1 and will try to grab a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference quarterfinals when the clubs meet tonight at the Verizon Center in D.C.

Alexander Semin's overtime goal gave the Capitals a 2-1 win over the eighth- seeded Rangers in the opener on Wednesday. Semin ended a 14-game playoff goal- scoring drought with the tally at 18:24 of overtime.

With time winding down in the first extra session, New York defenseman Marc Staal tried to clear the puck out of his own end along the right boards, but Jason Arnott kept it in at the right point. He sent the puck over to the slot where Semin's one-timer sailed past Henrik Lundqvist.

Semin also assisted on Alex Ovechkin's game-tying goal with 6:16 to play in regulation, while Michal Neuvirth stopped 24 shots for the Capitals, who are the top-seeded team in the East for the second straight season.

Washington was bounced out in the first round by Montreal last season despite finishing with the best record in the NHL. The Caps lost an overtime decision to the Canadiens in the opener of last spring's series.

"For our team, to take this first game is huge, you always want to start out on top," said Washington head coach Bruce Boudreau.

Washington defenseman Mike Green -- the Caps' top offensive defenseman -- played in Game 1 after missing the last 20 games of the regular season with a concussion. Green notched an assist and had four shots on goal in 26 minutes, 30 seconds of ice time.

Matt Gilroy scored a goal in the first playoff game of his career, giving New York a 1-0 edge at 1:36 of the third period. Lundqvist, meanwhile, stopped 31 shots in the loss.

"It was a pretty tight game and we battled all night," said Lundqvist. "They played tight too and it was hard to get any good chances out there. It was a tough game to lose in overtime."

New York is back in the playoffs for the fifth time in six seasons. The Rangers' last trip to the postseason was in 2009, when they were knocked out in seven games by Washington in the opening round.

The Rangers, who had a solid 24-16-1 record on the road this year, will try to avoid falling in an 0-2 series' hole tonight before the series shifts to the Big Apple for Games 3 and 4. The third matchup of the series will take place on Sunday at Madison Square Garden.

Washington had a superb 25-8-8 record on home ice this year.

Although this is a matchup between a first and eighth seed, it will be hard for Washington to take New York lightly considering the way the season series went in 2010-11. After losing their first game against the Caps back in November, the Rangers won the final three meetings and outscored Washington by a combined 15-1 margin in those tests.

These clubs have met five times in the playoffs and Washington has won three of those series.