There’s a reason why they call overtime sudden death, and the end came suddenly for the Ottawa Senators as Brooks Laich scored for the Washington Capitals just 12 seconds into overtime to win the game 3-2. The end was quick as Senators defenseman Eric Karlsson fell at the Ottawa blue-line allowing the Capitals a two on one and the eventual game winner by Laich.

PHOTO CREDIT - Senators.com

Ottawa - December 4, 2011 - There’s a reason why they call overtime sudden death, and the end came suddenly for the Ottawa Senators as Brooks Laich scored for the Washington Capitals just 12 seconds into overtime to win the game 3-2. The end was quick as Senators defenseman Eric Karlsson fell at the Ottawa blue-line allowing the Capitals a two on one and the eventual game winner by Laich.

The Senators had another tough start to a game. Nicklas Backstrom scored just a 1:58 into the game to give the Capitals a 1-0 lead, on a shot that Craig Anderson should’ve had. The Senators are last in the league giving up 29 first period goals in the 26 games that they’ve played this season. Their record when behind after the first period fell to 4-7-1.

It’s amazing that the Senators are battling for a playoff spot considering that they have only led after the first period in six of the 26 games that they’ve played this season. This is a stat that the Senators need to turn around if they hope to stay in the playoff race further into the season.

Overall it was a pretty solid effort by the Senators. The game was pretty even with both sides registering 34 shots in regulation time. The Senators have played well on the road of late. The game in Washington tonight marks the final game in a stretch where the Senators played nine out of 10 games on the road. The Senators could’ve fallen way behind the pack with a bad stretch of games on the road, but they finished the 10 game stretch with a 5-3-2 record and now have themselves close to a playoff position. Of course we still have a long way to go, but the signs have been encouraging lately.

At times in tonight’s game I thought the Senators looked a little tired, but they battled hard right to the end and tied the game late on a Milan Michalek goal. The Senators were a little unfortunate to lose the game in Dallas on Thursday night and then the game in Washington tonight. Still, Senators fans must be happy with the level of play and compete showed by each of the player’s.