Capitals rout Islanders, 7-2

New York Islanders' Kyle Okposo (21) is checked into the boards by Washington Capitals' Shaone Morrisonn (26) during the second period of an NHL hockey game at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, N.Y., Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2010. (AP Photo/Paul J. Bereswill) Credit: AP Photo/Paul J. Bereswill
UNIONDALE, N.Y. — Alex Ovechkin was held in check, but Alexander Semin scored twice for the Washington Capitals, who netted four goals in the first period and surged to their seventh straight win, 7-2 over the New York Islanders on Tuesday night.
Semin had two unassisted goals, and Brendan Morrison and Mike Knuble also scored against Dwayne Roloson in the first period for the NHL’s most potent offense. Washington recorded only 12 shots in the frame but carried a 4-1 lead into the second.
Knuble’s goal, scored during a power play just moments after Ovechkin struck Islanders defenseman Jack Hillen in the face with a shot, made it 3-1 with 1:47 left in the first. Semin pushed the advantage to three goals when he scored with 5.2 seconds left.
Roloson stopped eight of 12 shots before being replaced by Rick DiPietro to start the second. DiPietro allowed goals to defenseman John Erskine and Jason Chimera in the middle frame, and to Brooks Laich in the third.
Washington, which entered with an NHL-best 3.74 goals per game, has scored at least four times in 10 of the past 11 contests (10-1). The Eastern Conference-leading Capitals (34-12-6) own the league’s longest current winning streak.
The only negatives for Washington on this night were that Ovechkin’s nine-game point streak was snapped along with the Capitals’ run of 14 straight penalty-kills.
Rob Schremp’s power-play goal got New York within 2-1 in the first, but the Islanders failed to sustain the momentum. Kyle Okposo scored 9:35 into the second to make it 5-2.
Jose Theodore was the beneficiary of the offensive outburst. He lasted only two periods before being replaced by Michal Neuvirth to start the third. Theodore stopped 18 shots.
Morrison got things started 1:05 in when he deflected Erskine’s shot past Roloson. Semin made it 2-0 just 3:44 later when he cut left-to-right in the Islanders zone and snapped a drive in on the Capitals’ fourth shot.
Schremp sliced the lead in half at 6:03, but Knuble and Semin connected again in the final moments of the period to turn it into a rout.
The Islanders have dropped two straight at home following a six-game winning streak there. They have also lost three of four overall following four consecutive victories. Roloson has given up at least four goals in three of his past five outings since DiPietro returned from injury.
Erskine scored his first goal in 110 games, dating to Jan. 19, 2008, at 2:36 of the second — giving the Capitals three goals on five shots spanning the first two periods.
Chimera answered Okposo’s goal to make it 6-2 at 13:58. That virtually assured these teams would not go to overtime as they had done in four straight games on Long Island and seven of 10 overall. Washington is 7-0-1 in its past eight against the Islanders — including 3-0-1 in the completed season series.
NOTES: Hillen was taken to the hospital for evaluation after being bloodied by Ovechkin’s shot to the chin. ... The Capitals’ season high is eight goals. They have netted at least five in 16 of 52 games. ... Semin became the fourth Capitals player to reach 50 points this season. ... Islanders 18-year old prospect D Calvin de Haan will have shoulder surgery on Thursday and be sidelined six months, the team said.