The Washington Capitals came up short again in spite of - not because of - Alex Ovechkin's postseason play.

Those arguing Ovechkin can't win the Stanley Cup gained more fuel for their narrative after the Capitals were eliminated by the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 6 of their second-round series Tuesday night, but he's hardly to blame for the latest disappointment.

"He did all the right things. He said all the right things. This certainly isn't on him," Capitals forward Justin Williams said postgame, according to Puck Daddy's Greg Wyshynski.

"It's about us as a team, obviously not … quite … being good enough."

Ovechkin notched a point per game in his 12 playoff contests this spring, including two goals and five assists against the Penguins.

The captain's 62 shots on goal led all playoff skaters - good for 13 more than the next closest player (teammate John Carlson) and eclipsing third-ranked Vladimir Tarasenko by 17, even though the St. Louis Blues sniper has played one more game.

Ovechkin squandered several opportunities to score in Game 6, but still finished with a pair of helpers, six shots, and more than 27 minutes of ice time.

Certainly, he could have converted on more of his chances, but he still finished tied for fourth in both playoff goals and points.

He posted favorable possession numbers in all but three of the 12 postseason contests, according to War-On-Ice, and finished with an even-strength Corsi For rating of 57.4 in the playoffs, per Corsica Hockey.

The Capitals won the Presidents' Trophy with the league's best regular-season record, boast the consensus Vezina Trophy favorite in Braden Holtby, and might have more depth than they've ever had. Still, they failed to emerge from the conference semifinal for the second straight season.

"We lost in the second round. It sucks," Ovechkin said Tuesday night.

"Every year, (there are) lots of expectations. Lots of great players. There's something we're missing. This group of guys can do better. Can go farther than the second round. I think we have the best goalie in the league. All four lines can play well. We just didn't execute when we had a chance to put the puck in the net."

The Capitals qualified for the playoffs in eight of the last nine years, but Washington hasn't advanced past the second round since losing in the Stanley Cup Final in 1998.

Despite that, Ovechkin has 82 points (41 goals and 41 assists) in 84 career postseason games.

Whatever ingredient is missing, it doesn't appear to be the captain.

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A spot in the Western Conference final will be on the line in Dallas on Wednesday, as the Stars host the St. Louis Blues in Game 7 of an up-and-down, second-round series for both clubs.

The Stars and Blues were separated by two points in the regular-season standings, with Dallas earning the right to host a deciding Game 7.

How they got here

Round 1

• Blues defeat Blackhawks in 7
• Stars defeat Wild in 6

Here are three reasons why the road team will prevail.

Blues hold advantage in shots, goals

While this series can be parsed any which way, the simple fact is the Blues have the advantage in both shots and goals through six games.

All three of the Stars wins have been by a margin of one goal, and two came courtesy of sudden death overtime, which is essentially a coin flip. On the flip side, the Blues have won big in two of the contests, taking Games 3 and 5 - both played in Dallas - by a combined score of 10-2.

Clearly St. Louis isn't intimidated by American Airlines Center, and the Blues have the added advantage of having conquered the defending Stanley Cup champions in a Game 7 in the opening round, albeit on home ice.

Elliott out for redemption

Brian Elliott was given the hook after giving up three goals on seven shots in Game 6, but overall, his playoff performance to date has been solid.

The 31-year-old has started all 13 games for the Blues this postseason, allowing 31 goals while stopping 92.6 percent of shots faced, ranking him fourth among all remaining goaltenders.

At the other end of the ice, the Stars duo of Antti Niemi and Kari Lehtonen has combined for a save percentage of .893, a number that should not inspire confidence, despite a strong outing by the latter in Game 6.

Elliott allowed five goals in a Game 6 loss to Chicago, but rebounded with a 31-save performance in a 3-2 win in Game 7. Head coach Ken Hitchcock hasn't confirmed his Game 7 starter, but Blues' players said they'd be surprised if it isn't Elliott, and, quite frankly, with good reason.

Fallen Star

Based on how well Jamie Benn and Jason Spezza have been playing, it might be easy to overlook the fact Tyler Seguin has been limited to 12:21 of ice time during the postseason due to injury.

To their credit, the Stars have come a long way without the services of their top young center, although the argument can be made they did so while avoiding the true powerhouses of the Western Conference, tossed aside by other opponents.

The reality is it would be far easier to reach for the Stars in Game 7 if their lineup featured a player who recorded 33 goals and 73 points in 72 regular-season games.

Take a poll and hockey fans would likely be surprised to hear the Stars are one win away from the third round sans Seguin, and with good reason. Chances are they won't indeed get that far without him.

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The hockey season isn't ending just yet for a trio of Washington Capitals.

Alex Ovechkin, Evgeny Kuznetsov, and Dmitry Orlov will play for the Russian national team at the ongoing World Championship in Moscow and St. Petersburg, according to the IIHF.

The Capitals were eliminated in Game 6 of their second-round series by the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday night.

Related - Watch: Bonino OT goal ousts Caps, sends Pens to conference finals

Ovechkin led Russia to gold medals at the tournament in 2008, 2012, and 2014. Kuznetsov has represented his home country three times - from 2012-2014 - earning two golds and a silver.

Orlov will take part in his second World Championship after winning gold in 2014.

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Another year, another second-round exit for the Washington Capitals, who dropped Game 6 against the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-3 in overtime Tuesday after winning the Presidents' Trophy.

Though it was a disappointing end to an incredible year, Capitals head coach Barry Trotz spoke about how far the team has come since he took over as bench boss in 2014, and how far it still has to go.

"You look at our resiliency, you look at the heart of our team, that's the progress," Trotz said after his team clawed back from a three-goal deficit to send the game to overtime, according to NHL.com.

"We've made some progress, but obviously not enough," he continued. "We need to get through this round. That's part of the deal. ... That will always be thrown at us until we get through that, so we need to do it."

Alex Ovechkin still awaits his first trip to the Eastern Conference finals after 11 seasons, but Trotz, who is also yet to reach the NHL's final four over his 17-year coaching career, doesn't believe his veterans should be blamed for the disappointing result.

"I don't think there's any blame to go to Alex or Backy or any of the guys that have been here for a while," the coach said.

Ovechkin finished the series with seven points in six games, while Nicklas Backstrom recorded four assists.

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Winning never gets old.

Following Pittsburgh's massive Game 6 win over the Washington Capitals, Penguins legend and principal owner Mario Lemieux joined Sidney Crosby and Kris Letang in the locker room.

Something tells us this won't be the last time Super Mario is celebrating with the current crop of Penguins.

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Patric Hornqvist looked like he had a wide open net to send the Pittsburgh Penguins to the Eastern Conference Final in overtime, but thankfully for the Washington Capitals, Jay Beagle came to the rescue.

With Braden Holtby out at the top of the crease, Beagle dove behind his netminder to deflect the puck out of harm's way.

Here's an overhead view from the NHL:

Hornqvist's view:

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The Pittsburgh Penguins have defeated the Washington Capitals in six games, and are advancing to the Eastern Conference finals thanks to a Nick Bonino goal in overtime.

Pittsburgh held a 3-0 lead late in the second period, only to see the Presidents' Trophy winners tie the game in the third after taking three consecutive delay-of-game penalties.

The Penguins outshot the Capitals 7-3 in the extra frame, with the final strike coming courtesy of Bonino at 6:23.

Carl Hagelin and Phil Kessel registered the assists on the series-clinching goal.

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With a 3-2 lead in the third period, the Pittsburgh Penguins made their path the Eastern Conference Final a whole lot tougher by committing three consecutive delay-of-game penalties for shooting the puck over the glass in a span of only 2:02.

It was defenseman John Carlson who finally tied the game with a point shot during the Washington Capitals' second five-on-three of the period after Ian Cole gifted his opponent another two-man advantage just after Chris Kunitz left the box.

Assists were given to captain Alex Ovechkin and forward Justin Williams, who continues to build his reputation as one of the most clutch players in the league.

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Brooks Orpik had prime seats for a pair of Pittsburgh Penguins power-play goals during the second period of Game 6.

Serving a double-minor after high-sticking Patric Hornqvist, the Washington Capitals defenseman watched as the home team went up 3-0 with a pair of goals scored 33 seconds apart.

First, Phil Kessel scored his second of the game after out-waiting and outwitting Braden Holtby.

Shortly thereafter, Carl Hagelin deftly tipped the puck past Holtby.

And in the blink of an eye, the Capitals' Presidents' Trophy campaign came closer to an early end.

(Videos courtesy: NHL.com)

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While it isn't easy for any young player to establish themselves in the NHL, it's impossible to imagine how Vancouver Canucks forward Linden Vey has made it through his first few professional seasons while dealing with an unimaginable murder conspiracy involving his family.

In 2013 - the year Vey broke into the NHL - Linden's father, Curtis Vey, and co-accused Angela Nicholson were charged with conspiracy to murder their spouses, including Linden's mother Brigitte, in their hometown of Wakaw, Sask.

"It changes your life," Vey told The Province's Jason Botchford. "Your life is a certain way for so many years and all of a sudden, you wake up one day and it's totally different."

Vey admits it's difficult to play with that kind of situation weighing on his mind, but he doesn't want to use it as an excuse for any disappointing play in the past couple years.

"I'm not going to sit here and say it's part of the reason I've had two of the worst seasons of my career," the 24-year-old said.

After recording 24 points in 75 games in the 2014-15 campaign, Vey failed to make the team to start this season and was not called up until December.

"I didn't have a very good training camp," Vey admitted. "I thought it got better when I got called up. I think I started playing a little bit better."

Curtis Vey and Nicholson will begin trial May 24, and the Canucks forward plans to be with his family in Saskatchewan during the offseason to support his mother.

"Our family is going to do its best to find its way through it."

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