WASHINGTON -- Every point matters more than ever to Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals, who are part of a logjam in the Eastern Conference -- and on the outside of the playoff race, looking in, at the moment. Jordi Alba Jersey . So blowing two-goal leads, as the Capitals tend to do, and losing key players such as centre Nicklas Backstrom to injury are not exactly what they want. All of those bad things happened to the Capitals in a 5-4 shootout loss Tuesday night against the Los Angeles Kings, who came back after Ovechkin scored two early power-play goals. "Obviously, you miss Backy, but every team has guys that go out," said Capitals coach Adam Oates, who would only say that Backstrom has an upper-body injury. "Youve got 19 other guys that have got to do the job. Weve got plenty of guys that can do the job." Also "being evaluated," as Oates put it, after the game was defenceman Jack Hillen, who was involved in a scary moment halfway through overtime, colliding with Ovechkin at centre ice. Hillens helmet slammed into Ovechkins chest, and the game was put on hold for a bit. Ovechkin got the wind knocked out of him and took a knee, but returned to the game. Hillen got the worst of the impact and remained face-down on the ice while a trainer checked on him. Washington is ninth in the East, one spot out of the playoffs based on tiebreakers, even though it is one of four teams with 80 points, alongside No. 7 Columbus, No. 8 Detroit and No. 10 Toronto. The Capitals have nine games left, starting Saturday at home against Boston. So among the Capitals, there was a mix of relief at the idea of picking up one point against Los Angeles -- and disappointment at failing to get two after leading 2-0 thanks to Ovechkin before the game was 7 1/2 minutes old, and then being ahead 3-1 entering the third period. "Theres no excuse. We have to find a way to win when we are up two goals," Washington forward Marcus Johansson said. "It hurts a lot. You never know when it comes down to it -- in or out (of the playoffs) by one point." Anze Kopitar and Jeff Carter scored in the shootout for the Kings, and goalie Jonathan Quick caught Eric Fehrs attempt after rookie forward Evgeny Kuznetsov whiffed on Washingtons opening shot. Kuznetsov had tied the wild, back-and-forth game with 41.5 seconds left in regulation on his first NHL goal, a short-hander that came when he reached in to knock home a loose puck after it trickled through Quicks pads on Ovechkins shot. Plenty of fans thought Ovechkin was responsible for his third goal of the night, and they tossed their hats onto the ice. But his total stayed at a league-leading 48. While Kuznetsovs goal got the crowd excited, in the end, the Kings wound up winning their seventh consecutive road game and their fourth game in a row overall. They began Tuesday sixth in the West, and their playoff status is looking a lot more secure than Washingtons. Los Angeles coach Darryl Sutter wasnt pleased with the way his team started Tuesday. But he liked the way his players turned things around. "We just kind of hung in there," Sutter said. Mike Richards, Dwight King, Marian Gaborik and Dustin Brown scored for the Kings in regulation. The most important goal might have been Kings, which came 45 seconds into the third period and pulled Los Angeles within 3-2. "The boys stuck together, stuck with it," Kings defenceman Drew Doughty said. "We knew the whole time we were going to get back in that game." NOTES: LW Dustin Penner netted his first goal for the Capitals since arriving from Anaheim at the trade deadline. ... The Kings have seven victories in a row over Washington. ... Midway through the second period, Capitals F Troy Brouwer and Kings D Willie Mitchell were both called for penalties after a skirmish in front of Quicks net. Brouwer stayed down on the ice for a bit, then was helped up and led to the locker room. It wasnt immediately clear what was wrong. ... The Kings record is eight straight road wins, in the 1974-75 season. Suso Jersey . Brooks replaces right-hander Yordano Ventura, who left his last outing with a sore elbow. Ventura is expected to miss one start. Brooks has made one relief appearance for the Royals this season, allowing six runs in two innings in a May 3 loss to Detroit. Custom Spain Jerseys . I kept my eyes focused up on the camera during each approach. I just tried to stay focused on my form, as I didnt know what the ball reaction was. I was quite emotional at the end. I did not actually see any of the shots in the game until I got home and watched the video. http://www.spainsoccerpro.com/Sergio-Ramos-Spain-Jersey/ . TSN2 December 18 Knicks at Bulls 8pm et/5pm pt TSN2 December 18 Thunder at Warriors 10:30pm et/7:30pt TSN2 December 21 Pacers at Timberwolves 7pm et/4pm pt. TSN2 December 23 Timberwolves at Cavaliers 7pm et/4pm pt TSN2 December 25 Wizards at Knicks 12pm et/9am pt TSN December 25 Thunder at Spurs 2:30pm et/11:30pt TSN December 25 Cavaliers at Heat 5pm et/2pm pt TSN December 25 Lakers at Bulls 8pm et/5pm pt TSN December 25 Warriors at Clippers 10:30pm et/7:30pt TSN NBA on TSN - January Date Game Time Network January 1 Kings at Timberwolves 8pm et/5pm pt TSN2 January 3 Jazz at Timberwolves 8pm et/5pm pt TSN2 January 5 Nuggets at Timberwolves 8pm et/5pm pt TSN2 January 7 Rockets at Cavaliers 7pm et/4pm pt TSN January 7 Suns at Timberwolves 9:30pm et/6:30 pt. TSN January 9 Bulls at Wizards 8pm et/5pm pt TSN2 January 9 Cavaliers at Warriors 10:30pm et/7:30pt TSN2 January 13 Timberwolves at Pacers 7pm et/4pm pt TSN2 January 15 Thunder at Rockets 8pm et/5pm pt TSN2 January 15 Cavaliers at Lakers 10:30pm et/7:30pt TSN2 January 16 Cavaliers at Clippers 10:30pm et/7:30pt TSN2 January 22 NBA All-Star Selection Show 7pm et/4pm pt TSN2 January 22 Spurs at Bulls 8pm et/5pm pt TSN2 January 22 Nets at Clippers 10:30pm et/7:30pt TSN2 January 25 Heat at Bulls 1pm et/10am pt TSN January 25 Thunder at Cavaliers 3:30pm et/12:30pm pt TSN January 26 Timberwolves at Thunder 8pm et/5pm pt TSN2 January 29 Nuggets at Grizzlies 8pm et/5pm pt TSN2 January 29 Bulls at Lakers 10:30pm et/7:30pt TSN2 NBA on TSN - February Date Game Time Network February 5 Clippers vs.Tampa Bay Lightning forward Steven Stamkos continued towards his potential return on Friday, taking part in practice drills with light contact. While the 23-year-olds progress had some teammates saying he was looking pretty good, Stamkos offered a more tempered approach to his return. "I dont feel where I need to be in order to play a game yet, but its getting there," he told reporters after practice at the Bell Centre in Montreal. "Its nice to hear that the guys are saying that. Today I was in the corners a little more and getting bumped around (but) by no means was it full contact." Stamkos fractured the tibia in his right leg in a Nov. 11 game against the Boston Bruins and underwent surgery the following day. He returned to practice earlier than expected, leading each days progress to be closely monitored by Lightning fans as well as Canadians. Lightning general manager Steve Yzerman named Stamkos to Canadas 25-man roster for the coming Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia, but with Canadas first game just two weeks away, the clock is ticking on his hopes to be healthy in time. "You just have to listen to your body," Stamkos said. "Were talking a lot about the Olympics and my goal is to try to be ready for those Games, but your body doesnt lie. If youre doing certainn movements and you feel pain then thats an indicator that maybe its not quite ready. Asier Illarramendi Jersey. . "It is tough mentally as well, going in there knowing that youre a little hesitant in certain areas. Ive said that before that thats what you dont want so you just try to overcome that as you progress and you take more contact in practice and hopefully that goes away." Stamkos scored 14 goals and 23 points in 17 for the Lightning this season prior to his injury. However, opportunities to get into game action before the Olympics are dwindling for the sniper. The Lightning have four games remaining before the NHL goes on break for the Games with the teams final game coming Feb. 8 against the Detroit Red Wings. While the Brampton, Ontario native wouldnt commit to a timeline, he acknowledged his progress thus far and expressed hope for it to continue over the next two weeks. "It has gotten better," he said. "Theres less and less pain every time I get on the ice but there is still a little discomfort. "Im hoping in the next week and a half, two weeks, that that feels a lot better and I can do certain movements without having that pain or at least with some pain thats manageable. Right now its still a little sharp in certain areas so thats what Im trying to improve." Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys Disocunt Football Jerseys White NFL Jerseys Cheap Discount Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys 2020 Wholesale NFL T-shirts NFL Jerseys China ' ' '