Earlier this week, Washington Capitals associate goaltender coach and former Cap Olaf Kolzig likened Alex Ovechkin to a "rock star." Well, if Ovechkin was the opener, Alexander Semin was the headliner.
Ovechkin's goal in the third period brought the Caps back into a tie with the Florida Panthers, while Semin's goal put them up for good as the Caps completed the comeback in a 2-1 win.
Ovechkin and Semin's former teammate, Tomas Fleischmann, gave the Panthers a 1-0 lead with 40 seconds remaining in the first period when he sneaked behind the defense and fired Stephen Weiss' pass past former Panther Tomas Vokoun (22 saves), who was making his first appearance at BankAtlantic Center since joining the Caps this summer.
After a scoreless second period, Ovechkin brought Washington back into a 1-1 tie about five minutes into the third period when he found the puck in a scrum in front of the net and beat former Cap Jose Theodore (39 saves), who was also making his first appearance against his former club since leaving Washington in 2010. Semin scored the game-winning goal with just over six minutes remaining when his snap shot eluded Theodore. Ovechkin and Semin are the only two forwards to have scored for the Caps in their last four games.
The Panthers tried to tie the game late with Theodore pulled in favor of an extra attacker, but they did not convert.
The win moves Washington to just two points behind Florida for first place in the Southeast Division. The Caps return to action Saturday when they visit the Tampa Bay Lightning.