TAMPA, Fla. – Vinny Prospal scored twice, including a tiebreaking power-play goal with 5:07 left in the third period, as the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Washington Capitals 4-2 on Friday night.

Prospal, positioned in the slot, redirected Vincent Lecavalier’s shot from the top of the right circle to put the Lightning up 3-2. Prospal added an empty goal during the final minute to complete the scoring.

Tampa Bay also got goals from Dan Boyle and Martin St. Louis. The Lightning have won consecutive games for the first time this season and snapped a three-game home losing streak which included a shootout defeat.

Rookie Alexander Ovechkin had his third two-goal game for Washington. The Capitals were looking to win two in a row for the initial time this year.

Ovechkin put the Capitals ahead 1-0 at 3:25 of the first. He has at least one point in 10 of his 11 games. Tampa Bay tied it at 1 less than a minute later on Boyle’s goal at 4:18.

Ovechkin made it 2-1 on a short-handed goal with 6:48 left in the first. He finished off a breakaway for his eighth goal by making a couple of stick handling moves to get Lightning goalie Sean Burke out of position.

St. Louis got Tampa Bay even at 2 with 1:43 to go in the second.

Notes: Capitals D Brendan Witt was in the lineup after missing one game to be with his family in south Florida during Hurricane Wilma. … The Lightning have not allowed a power-play goal in the last seven games. … Washington D Bryan Muir did not play. He had returned Wednesday after missing four games with a groin injury. … The Lightning lost the first meeting this season between the teams 3-2 in a shootout on Oct. 16 despite outshooting Washington 40-14.

AP-ES-10-28-05 2200EDT


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