As if the streaking Washington Capitals needed any more help, when they go for win No. 13 in a row against Atlanta, they won't even have to face Ilya Kovalchuk.

On the night Kovalchuk was dealt from the Thrashers to the New Jersey Devils, Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom and the rest of NHL-leading Capitals pulled out a 6-5 back-and-forth win Thursday night against the New York Rangers.

Backstrom's third-period, power-play goal -- his fifth point of the night -- snapped a tie and put the Capitals ahead for good. Washington will return home tonight to face Southeast Division-rival Atlanta, a playoff-hopeful club that is without the biggest star in franchise history.

The Capitals haven't lost since Jan. 12 at Tampa Bay and have outscored opponents, 57-27, in the franchise-record winning streak.

Backstrom already had four assists when he got to a loose puck near the left circle and snapped in his 24th goal to make it 6-5 at 5:34 of the third. Washington scored three goals on the power play to offset a season-high four man-advantage goals by the Rangers.

Ovechkin had two goals and an assist to reach 500 NHL points. He is the fifth player to achieve the milestone in five seasons, doing it in only 373 games. He raised his season's goal total to 38, tied with San Jose's Patrick Marleau for the NHL lead.

"We're pretty confident. There is a good atmosphere in the locker room," Ovechkin said. "This team is playing good right now."

Boyd Gordon and defenseman Tom Poti added goals for the Capitals. It was Backstrom's second five-point game this season.

• Canadiens 3, Bruins 2: Brian Gionta beat Tuukka Rask for the only goal in a shootout and Montreal sent Boston to its ninth consecutive loss. The Bruins, 1-9-3 in their last 13 games, blew a two-goal lead, then extended the second-longest losing streak in franchise history. They also lost their eighth home game in a row, also the second-longest streak in club history.

• Lightning 5, Islanders 2: Martin St. Louis scored a goal in his fifth consecutive game, Steven Stamkos had two goals and an assist as host Tampa Bay dealt New York its sixth loss in a row.

• Blue Jackets 2, Stars 1: Steve Mason had 22 saves, Plum native R.J. Umberger scored an empty-netter with 1:08 left while sliding on his gut as host Columbus made Claude Noel's coaching debut a success. Umberger's goal loomed large when Brad Richards scored with 43 seconds left.

• Senators 3, Canucks 1: Jason Spezza scored his ninth goal in his past eight games to help host Ottawa extend its team-record winning streak to 11 games.

• Sharks 4, Blues 2: Patrick Marleau scored his 38th goal to remain tied for the NHL lead, helping Western Conference-leading San Jose prevail at St. Louis.

• Predators 5. Avalanche 3: Patric Hornqvist had two power-play goals and an assist for host Nashville.

• Wild 4, Oilers 2: Martin Havlat had his first two-goal game for Minnesota as the Wild beat Edmonton for the 12th consecutive time at home.

• Kings 6, Ducks 4: Dustin Brown scored the go-ahead goal with 5:32 left after host Los Angeles blew a three-goal lead in the third period and the Kings tied a franchise record with their eighth consecutive victory. Anze Kopitar had two goals and two assists for the Kings.

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