Watch: Late phantom high-stick call costs Capitals

And the Oscar goes to ...

A late high-stick penalty on Washington Capitals winger T.J. Oshie, who appeared to clip Pittsburgh Penguins center Nick Bonino, negated a last-minute comeback for the trailing Capitals.

A replay later showed that Bonino's face was not struck on the play and that Oshie's stick in fact made contact with Bonino's shoulder. Oshie was whistled with 1:52 remaining.

At the time of the call, Washington was down 3-2, with netminder Braden Holtby soon headed to the bench for the extra attacker. Instead, the Capitals' would-be 6-on-5 advantage turned into a power play for the Penguins in the game's final minutes.

Pittsburgh did not capitalize with the man advantage, but held on for a 3-2 victory to push their series lead to 3-1.

The Capitals will fight for their playoff lives Saturday in Washington.