WASHINGTON CAPITALS VS BOSTON BRUINS 12/23/2019 LIVE 7:00 PM ET

The Boston Bruins face a tall task in snapping their slump ahead of the Christmas break as they host the Washington Capitals on Monday.

The Bruins have one win over their last nine games (1-4-4), dropping each of their last three at home in extra time. After Monday's game, Boston will get a chance to reset during the holidays before returning to the ice Friday at Buffalo.

The Capitals will also be off over the same period, though their hope is the break won't spoil their momentum. Washington has won 10 of its last 12 games and is poised to enter the new year with the best record in the league.

The Bruins will look to avoid a sweep in the season series, as the Capitals have won their first two matchups this season. Boston fell at home in a shootout in the first meeting Nov. 16 before a 3-2 setback on the road Dec. 11.

Forcing overtime hasn't been a problem for the Bruins, who have had a penchant for third-period comebacks. It's what they do in the extra period that needs work, as their nine one-point losses are more than any other team.

"It's good for us that we've been able to come back and get that point and put ourselves in a good position to get out of one," said David Pastrnak. "(Have) to be better and try to extend a little bit in the third."

Such was on display against the Nashville Predators on Saturday, when Patrice Bergeron tied the game at 3 with the goalie pulled and 1:05 remaining in the third period. Boston carried the momentum into overtime but ultimately lost when Ryan Ellis scored with 55 seconds left.

"You can't just enjoy when things are good, and when things are bad just jump ship. That's just too easy," said Bergeron. "I've said that before. It's a long season. Hopefully these things make you stronger."

Washington enjoyed a comeback of its own against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday. Tied 1-1 midway through the third period, the Capitals rallied for a 3-1 win despite facing four penalties and 1:26 of a 5-on-3 over the final 10 minutes.

"We made it a little harder on ourselves than we needed to, but I thought we stuck with it," said Radko Gudas, who scored his first goal of the season in the second period. "We made smart plays, we didn't really turn the puck over too much, and I thought we deserved it tonight."

The two late third-period goals also came from unusual suspects as Dmitry Orlov and Nic Dowd each got their third of the year -- Dowd's coming short-handed into an empty net at 17:37.

"Our forwards did a good job of getting the puck in the zone and trying to keep the puck," said the defenseman Orlov. "If they don't have a chance, they give it to us and just try to crash the net. We just try to get the puck there, and I think it's the most important thing right now in this league, to get the puck through."