MONTREAL -- Troy Brouwer scored the winner in the fourth round of the shootout as the visiting Washington Capitals beat the Montreal Canadiens 5-4 on Thursday.

Alex Ovechkin and Joel Ward each scored a pair of goals for the Capitals (43-25-10) in regulation time. Braden Holtby made 23 saves and improved to 6-0-2 in his career versus Montreal.

Jeff Petry, Tom Gilbert, Lars Eller and P.K. Subban scored for the Canadiens (47-22-9), while Carey Price stopped 15 shots in defeat.

Down 3-2 in the third, the Capitals scored two power-play goals in 1:13 to take the lead. Washington finished 3 for 4 with the man advantage.

In overtime, Eric Fehr came inches from giving Washington the victory but his shot hit the post to Price's left.

Washington has now won 10 of its last 12 when Ovechkin finds the back of the net. The Caps are 8-0-1 in their last nine games at Bell Centre.

After a scoreless but fast-paced first period, the teams combined for five goals on 16 shots in the second.

Petry got the ball rolling for Montreal 58 seconds into the period when his shot took a deflection off defenceman Karl Alzner to beat Holtby. It was Petry's second goal in as many games.

The Capitals went more than 18 minutes without a shot on Price between the first and second periods, but they made up for it with two goals in the second.

Joel Ward tied the game at 10:36 before Ovechkin gave the Caps the 2-1 lead at 14:08.

With Max Pacioretty in the box for hooking, Washington's league-best power play got to work. After evading a poke-check by Brandon Prust at the blue-line, Ovechkin beat his fellow Hart Trophy candidate Price with his league-leading 51st goal of the season.

With the goal -- the 473rd of his career and fourth in his last three games -- Ovechkin became the Capitals' all-time leading scorer, passing Peter Bondra.

In his first game back from injury, Gilbert made it 2-2 just 39 seconds later with a wrister far side on Holtby, and Eller gave the Canadiens the lead at 18:39 of the second.

Ovechkin scored his second, again on the power play, at 11:06 of the third.

Ward gave the Capitals the lead 1:13 later before Subban tied things up 4-4 with a rocket from the point with five minutes left on the clock.

Notes: Brian Flynn and Greg Pateryn were healthy scratches. ... Blue Jays Russell Martin and Mark Buehrle were in attendance, as well as former Expo Valdimir Guerrero. ... Linesman Jean Morin, who officiated the last of his 1,638 career NHL games, received a standing ovation from the Bell Centre crowd.