NHL delivers double‑overtime
- The 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs produced their first double-overtime game, featuring Carolina and Ottawa. (espn.com) - Notable sequence: Carolina led by two, Ottawa tied it in the second, and the game extended deep into OT. (espn.com) - Several first‑round series, including Sabres, Avs, Knights, and Canadiens, are positioning to go up 2‑0. (espn.com)
The National Hockey League playoffs got their first double-overtime game Monday night, and Carolina left it with a 3-2 win and a 2-0 series lead over Ottawa. (nhl.com) Jordan Martinook scored at 13:53 of the second overtime at Lenovo Center in Raleigh, beating Linus Ullmark from the slot after a pass from Nikolaj Ehlers. Carolina had already won Game 1 by a 2-0 score. (nhl.com) Carolina went up 2-0 in the first period before Ottawa tied it in the second, sending the game past regulation and through one full overtime. The Hurricanes also had an overtime goal wiped out on review, and Martinook later missed a penalty shot before scoring the winner. (nhl.com) The result pushed Carolina to 2-0 in a best-of-seven series that now shifts to Ottawa for Game 3 on Thursday, April 23, at 7:30 p.m. Eastern. Ottawa entered the matchup as the second wild card in the East after a 99-point regular season, while Carolina finished with 113 points and the top seed in the Metropolitan Division. (nhl.com, espn.com) Elsewhere in the first round, four other teams opened Tuesday with chances to grab 2-0 leads on home ice. Buffalo led Boston 1-0 after a 4-3 Game 1 win, Montreal led Tampa Bay 1-0 after a 4-3 overtime opener, Colorado led Los Angeles 1-0 after a 2-1 win, and Vegas led Utah 1-0 after a 4-2 win. (nhl.com, nhl.com) Those early edges matter because the bracket opened without the two-time defending champion Florida Panthers, guaranteeing a new Stanley Cup winner in 2026. Sixteen teams started the postseason, and several of the higher seeds spent the first three nights protecting home ice. (espn.com, nhl.com) Monday’s Carolina-Ottawa game also stood out for how long it ran before the series had even settled into its travel schedule. By the time Martinook ended it, the Hurricanes had survived more than 90 minutes of game time and one of the strangest overtime sequences of this postseason’s opening week. (nhl.com, nhl.com) Now the series heads north with Carolina holding the cushion every home team wants after a long night: two wins, no losses, and the only double-overtime finish of the playoffs so far. (nhl.com, nhl.com)
