PITTSBURGH — Alex Ovechkin followed up his Game 3-winning goal with a rare no-show. Not merely a playoff game without a goal — but a game without a shot.

Ovechkin did not put a shot on the net Thursday night in the Washington Capitals’ Game 4 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins, 3-1.

The captain entered Game 4 with eight goals this postseason, including one in every game of this series, and 54 total in his career.

Capitals coach Barry Trotz had little to offer about how the Penguins defended Ovechkin.

“I don’t know if they did anything differently,” Trotz said. “Trust me. Ovi will get his shots.”

Ovechkin himself was not made available to reporters after the game.

The captain did take two chances in the third — shots that went wide of the net, one early in the period and one in the final desperate seconds of the game. Matt Murray did not have to make a play on either puck.

It was just the third time in 107 career playoff games that Ovechkin failed to record a single shot. It had not happened since 2012 in the second round against the New York Rangers; the first time was against the Montreal Canadiens in 2010. Washington lost both games in overtime.

The last game Ovechkin did not record a shot was Feb. 17 in a loss at Chicago.

One big change from Game 3 to Game 4 was the absence of Tom Wilson, who has skated on the right side of Ovechkin’s line for most of the year. But Ovechkin and center Evgeny Kuznetsov also have had experience with Devante Smith-Pelly, who filled in on the top line Thursday.

Their chemistry wasn’t back just yet. The line finished minus-one for the game, though Trotz said he was happy with Smith-Pelly’s performance.

While Ovechkin faltered for the night, his Pittsburgh counterpart, Sidney Crosby, stepped up. The star center recorded two assists and has been on the ice for every Pittsburgh goal of the series.

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