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WASHINGTON -- Alex Ovechkin has scored so many big goals for the Washington Capitals over the years that his teammates and coaches didn't sound surprised following his latest heroics. Ovechkin, back in the lineup after sitting out Tuesday's game, scored the go-ahead goal with 2:40 left and the Capitals defeated the New York Islanders 3-2 on Thursday.
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Ovechkin one-timed a feed from center Nicklas Backstrom past Islanders goaltender Jaroslav Halak for his 29th goal of the season.
"He's had to be the clutch guy -- him and Backi -- since he got here," coach Barry Trotz said of the veteran winger. "And it's not foreign to him."
Ovechkin was suspended for one contest after sitting out Sunday's All-Star game to rest a lower-body injury. With him and goalie Braden Holtby, who was rested, on the bench Tuesday night, the Capitals suffered a 5-2 loss to the Panthers.
Thanks in part to Ovechkin's late goal, the Metropolitan Division leaders avoided their first three-game losing streak of the season as they defeated the third-place Islanders.
"He came through at the right time," Holtby said of Ovechkin. "That's the way our team is. Everyone has his role and everyone seems to be doing it. And that's Ovi's role."
Left winger Andre Burakovsky (five goals in his past four games) and right winger T.J. Oshie also scored for Washington (36-9-4). Backstrom had two assists and Holtby made 24 saves.
"It's my job to get in that lane so he can't get that puck through and I wasn't there to not let Ovechkin get that shot off so that's on me," Islanders center John Tavares said of the game-winner. "It stings because the guys played hard and Jaro played well."
New York had a power play chance after Ovechkin's goal and pulled Halak, but couldn't force overtime.
The Islanders tied the game at 5:38 of the third when right winger Josh Bailey one-timed a pass from defenseman Marek Zidlicky by Holtby.
Center Mikhail Grabovski also scored for the Islanders (26-17-6), and Halak made 20 saves.
"(It was) one of the best games we've played in this building and we still came away with no points," Islanders coach Jack Capuano said after his team's first game in Washington since dropping Game 7 of their first round playoff series last spring.
"They got some timely scoring and (Ovechkin) was in a good spot there."
The Islanders needed 1:55 to take a 1-0 lead.
Defenseman Travis Hamonic's shot from the point was blocked in front, but Grabovski gained control of the puck and shot it home for his ninth of the season.
The Capitals' equalizer started with an Islanders blast from the point as well when right winger Ryan Strome's shot went behind Holtby, around the boards and all the way down into the New York zone.
Backstrom got to the puck, stopped below the right circle, spun and fed the trailing Oshie, who beat Halak at 7:28 for his 16th goal.
"I don't know if we could somehow put a heart rate monitor on him," Oshie said of Backstrom, "but it seems like when he gets the puck everything slows down for him."
Halak preserved the tie when he stopped center Michael Latta on a breakaway midway through the second period, but Washington pulled ahead with 1:18 left before the second intermission.
With each team a man down, Washington defenseman Dmitri Orlov poked the puck away from left winger Brock Nelson on a rush and started back the other way.
Left winger Jason Chimera fanned on a shot, but managed to poke the puck from behind the net into the crease where Burakovsky was able to swipe it into the net.
NOTES: Capitals coach Barry Trotz said G Braden Holtby will start both of this weekend's back-to-back games against the Devils and Flyers. ... Capitals LW Marcus Johansson (upper body) missed his third game, and RW Stanislav Galiev and D Aaron Ness were also scratched. Ness was called up from Hershey of the American Hockey League on Thursday in case D Taylor Chorney, who left Tuesday's game against the Panthers with flu-like symptoms, couldn't play. ... RW Steve Bernier, D Scott Mayfield and G Jean-Francois Berube were New York's scratches.
