Canucks-Capitals Preview

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• Semin Scores Twice As Capitals Dispatch Canucks, 5-1

Regular Season Matchup
	W-L-OT	HOME	ROAD	DIV	CONF
VAN	45-27-10	24-12-5	21-15-5	15-6-3	35-21-8
WAS	50-24-8	29-9-3	21-15-5	16-8-0	42-14-8
· Complete Standings

Team Stat Comparison
243	Goals	268
213	Goals Against	240
67	Power Play Goals	85
69	Power Play Goals Allowed	75
7	Shorthanded Goals	7
5	Shorthanded Goals Allowed	11
1351	Penalty Minutes	1041
16	Average Penalty Minutes	13

Goalie Breakdown
	GOALIE	GP	W	TGA	GAA	SO	SV	SV%
	Roberto Luongo	54	33	124	2.34	9	1418	.920
	Curtis Sanford	19	7	42	2.59	1	406	.906
	Jason LaBarbera	9	3	20	2.66	0	215	.915
	Cory Schneider	8	2	20	3.38	0	142	.877
	Jose Theodore	57	32	157	2.87	2	1415	.900
	Brent Johnson	21	12	53	2.81	0	526	.908
	Semyon Varlamov	6	4	13	2.37	0	146	.918
	Michal Neuvirth	5	2	11	3.00	0	91	.892

Team Stat Leaders
G	Daniel Sedin 31	Alex Ovechkin 56
A	Henrik Sedin 60	Nicklas Backstrom 66
PTS	Henrik Sedin 82	Alex Ovechkin 110
PIM	Shane O'Brien 196	Donald Brashear 121
SOG	Daniel Sedin 285	Alex Ovechkin 528

Alex Ovechkin didn't need long to show why he's the NHL's reigning MVP and why he could be favored to repeat.

The Washington star looks to build off his first two goals of the season Monday when he and the Capitals host the Vancouver Canucks, who are looking for their first 3-0 start in nine years.

Ovechkin scored a league-leading 65 goals to go along with 47 assists last season to help the Capitals (1-1-0) reach the playoffs for the first time since 2003. He scored twice Saturday in a 4-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks in Washington's home opener.

"Look at him and how he plays -- he wins battles. That's why he's a star player," Blackhawks coach Denis Savard said. "You want to be a star player, you do it every night, not just once in a while."

The Capitals trailed 2-1 after the first period, but Ovechkin tied it in the second with his first goal of the season. He added another with about 1 1/2 minutes left to complete the scoring after Brooks Laich scored the go-ahead goal 15:33 into the third period.

The Capitals bounced back after opening the season with a 7-4 loss at Atlanta on Friday. Jose Theodore, who didn't make it through the second period in the loss after allowing four goals, made 19 saves on Saturday and recovered despite allowing a goal between his legs on the first shot he faced, 26 seconds into the game.

"I just felt really bad for Theo," Washington coach Bruce Boudreau said. "I knew he wanted more than anything tonight, and I knew he wanted to redeem himself."

Theodore signed a two-year, $9 million contract in the offseason. The Capitals were looking for someone to replace Olaf Kolzig and Cristobal Huet, who both left via free agency. In 52 starts last season with Colorado, Theodore had a 2.47 goals-against average.

He played well against Vancouver last season, going 5-0-1 with a 1.97 GAA.

Theodore faces a Canucks team that has showed surprising offensive power early on, though. Vancouver swept a home-and-home series with the Calgary Flames to open the season, winning 6-0 at home on Thursday and 5-4 in overtime on Saturday to open a six-game road trip. Daniel Sedin, who had three assists in the opener, had two goals Saturday, and Pavol Demitra scored with 1:06 left in overtime for the win.

"When you go to the net, good things happen," Demitra said. "I was a little bit lucky but (Alex) Burrows made a good play. I think he lost the puck and it came right to my stick and I just put it in the net."

The Canucks last won their first three games in the 1999-2000 season.

Vancouver's impressive offensive output in the first two games is a good sign for a team that was in the bottom third of the league in goals scored with 213 in 2007-08.

"It's a great feeling, a win in this building, and a good start at 2-0," said Demitra, who was signed as a free agent in the offseason to help boost the offense. "Everybody on this team is having a good time, everyone's contributing."

Washington is 0-4-1 in the five meetings with Vancouver since a 4-3 victory in 2001. Last season, the Canucks won 3-2.