Washington beats themselves again

Heading into Sunday's game with the Penguins, the Capitals trailed the Hurricanes by seven points, and they had two games in hand.

Niclas Backstrom scored a beautiful game winning goal. The only problem was that it was into his own net. Backstrom tipped one into his own net, giving the Penguins a 3-2 lead late in a crucial game. A few seconds later, Jordan Staal scored an empty netter to secure the win for the Penguins.

Carolina still has a seven point lead in the Southeast division. For the second day in a row, Washington has beat itself and helped Carolina in the process. Washington still has a game in hand, but with just 12 games to play, the seven point difference will be a huge one to overcome.

And there is much rejoicing in Carolina.