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Alexeev scores twice as Lightning sink Capitals

Oct 22, 2006 - 1:41 AM WASHINGTON (Ticker) -- The Tampa Bay Lightning finally solved Olaf Kolzig.

Nikita Alexeev scored two goals as the Lightning skated to a 6-4 victory over Kolzig and the Washington Capitals.

Tampa Bay finally had its way against its long-time nemesis, who has been especially difficult to beat at the Verizon Center.

Kolzig was 2-0-1 with a 1.89 GAA in three home games against the Lightning last season. He entered the contest with a 12-4-1 home mark against Tampa Bay since the Verizon Center opened in 1997.

"We got six goals against a goalie and a team that works hard and that's a positive for us," Tampa Bay's Brad Richards said. "We haven't done that this year."

"We ended up scoring some goals and everyone chipped in," Lightning coach John Tortorella said. "We did some really good things. It wasn't perfect, and it's never going to be, but we won a big road game against a very hard-working hockey team and a much-improved hockey team."

The Lightning (4-4-0) took control with a three-goal second period, including tallies by Martin St. Louis and Alexeev 22 seconds apart that helped open a 4-2 advantage entering the third period. Alexeev added his second goal at 9:04 of the final session for a commanding 5-2 lead.

"It hurt our chance to win obviously when you have a lead going into the second," Capitals coach Glen Hanlon said. "In the new NHL, the players are quite confident that even with the two-goal leads in games, which is what the NHL wanted, that there's always an opportunity to bring it back and I don't think it's the second period alone that did it."

Vincent Lecavalier opened the scoring for Tampa Bay with a shorthanded goal in the first period and Richards closed it out with an unassisted tally in the third just 39 seconds after Brian Sutherby connected for the Capitals (2-2-3).

"I kind of got lucky and went in alone untouched," Richards said. "I had a chance in the second (period) where I didn't shoot and I was kicking myself, so I had shot on my mind the whole way in and it was a big relief."

Andreas Karlsson, who has played in Sweden and Switzerland the past three years, also scored for the Lightning, his first NHL tally since December 2001.

Alexander Semin and defenseman Mike Green scored first-period goals and Alexander Ovechkin had a power-play tally for the Capitals.