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Ovechkin eyes 60 goals as Capitals visit Blackhawks

Mar 19, 2008 - 12:56 PM Washington (36-30-8) at Chicago (34-32-7) 8:30 pm EDT

CHICAGO (Ticker) - The Washington Capitals and Chicago Blackhawks meet for the only time in the regular season on Wednesday.

Washington continued its strong play of late with Tuesday's 4-2 victory at Nashville, the Capitals' fourth consecutive win.

Alex Ovechkin set another record in that victory, becoming the first Washington player to record two 100-point seasons. With 58 goals, the Russian is two shy of Dennis Maruk's single-season team record.

He also is bidding to become the first player since Mario Lemieux in 1995-96 to surpass 60 goals in a season.

Washington is now two points behind eighth-place Philadelphia for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

The Blackhawks have fallen out of playoff contention in the Western Conference thanks to a 1-4-1 record in their last six games.

Chicago is coming off a 4-2 home loss to Calgary on Sunday. Patrick Lalime started in goal for the Blackhawks and allowed four goals on 22 shots through two periods.

Nikolai Khabibulin replaced Lalime to start the third period and made five saves. Khabibulin, Chicago's No. 1 goalie and highest-paid player, dressed after missing 12 games due to back spasms.

The Capitals and Blackhawks haven't faced each other since Chicago posted a 4-3 overtime victory at Washington on January 10, 2006.