The Ottawa Senators played the Washington Capitals close on Thursday night. However, the Senators fell to the Capitals in overtime thanks to an Alex Ovechkin overtime goal. The game was more notable for Ottawa than the opponent or result,

The Ottawa Senators came close as a strong team effort saw them hold the Washington Capitals scoreless through three periods but were unable to secure the win as they fell to the Washington Capitals by a score of 1-0 in overtime.

Chychrun returned to Ottawa this week as the top-scoring defenceman on the top team in the NHL and reflected on his time with the Senators.

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Opening faceoff is at 7 p.m. ET and you can watch it on ESPN+ ( plans start at $11.99/month). Washington (29-10-5, in the Metropolitan Division) last played on Tuesday night and beat visiting Anaheim 3-0 as Logan Thompson stopped all 19 shots. The Capitals are 6-1-3 in their last 10 games.

Alex Ovechkin scored at 3:07 of overtime to lift the visiting Washington Capitals over the Ottawa Senators 1-0 on Thursday night.

The 39-year-old winger took a pass from Rasmus Sandin on a 2-on-1 breakaway and fired it past rookie Leevi Merilainen, the record 179th goaltender he's scored on.

It wasn't the most exciting showdown between the Washington Capitals and Ottawa Senators, but instead, a goalie duel between rising starter Logan Thompson and rookie Leevi Meriläinen. Then, Alex Ovechkin did what he does best: steal the show.

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The defenceman, who grew up near Ottawa, was called up to play Thursday against the Washington Capitals. While the Sens lost in overtime, it was a win for mom Kim Sebrango who was in the stands watching her son play.

Kicking off a busy end-of-January stretch for both teams, the Ottawa Senators host the Boston Bruins in a key Saturday afternoon clash of clubs on the Eastern Conference playoff bubble.