Predators 1 - 4 Capitals
Final
  for this game

Semin, Brouwer lead Washington past Nashville

Dec 21, 2011 - 5:23 AM Washington, DC (Sports Network) - Alexander Semin and Troy Brouwer scored third-period goals as Washington bested Nashville, 4-1, at Verizon Center.

Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom tallied in the opening 20 minutes for the Capitals, who have taken four of their last six.

Michal Neuvirth stopped 20 shots in the victory.

"I think the first period set the tone for the entire game," said Caps head coach Dale Hunter. We took the play to them early. We should have scored more in the second but their goalie was good. But we got a couple in the third."

Sergei Kostitsyn provided the lone offense for the Predators, whose five-game win streak came to an end.

Anders Lindback surrendered four goals on 23 shots in defeat.

Kostitsyn fired away from below the left circle and scored at the 4:40 mark of the third to bring the Preds within 2-1, but the Caps restored their two-goal edge just after the midway point.

Marcus Johansson flew down the left wing and left a drop pass below the circle for Semin, whose rising wrister sailed over Lindback's shoulder with 9:39 remaining.

Brouwer then made it 4-1 with 6:14 showing when he redirected Dennis Wideman's long point blast on a power play.

"We just didn't give enough (goal) support for Lindy," Nashville head coach Barry Trotz said. "When it was 2-1, we had lots of chances to tie it up, and we didn't."

Ovechkin slipped a wrister home off a rush up the left wing with 7:42 played in the first period, then Backstrom's wraparound hit the net just inside the left pipe for a 2-0 Washington lead with 4:09 to go.

Game Notes

Washington forward Mike Knuble played in his 1,000th NHL game, becoming the second-oldest in NHL history to reach the milestone (Grant Ledyard)...He became the sixth man to reach the plateau in a Capitals' uniform, following Dale Hunter, Phil Housley, Adam Oates, Calle Johansson and Andrew Cassels...The Caps have won six of the last seven meetings with the Predators since March of 2008.






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