NHL: Double-Overtime Action

The 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs reached double overtime in the first round Monday night, with Carolina beating Ottawa 3-2 on Jordan Martinook’s goal at 13:53 of the second extra period. (nhl.com) Carolina led 2-0 before Ottawa tied it on goals by Drake Batherson and Dylan Cozens, then survived a wild first overtime in Raleigh after a would-be Hurricanes winner was overturned for offside. (nhl.com) Martinook also missed a penalty shot in the first overtime after Linus Ullmark got his glove on it, then ended the game later in the night after taking a pass from Nikolaj Ehlers and beating Ullmark through traffic. (nhl.com) The result gave the Hurricanes a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference first-round series after a 2-0 win in Game 1 on Saturday, when Logan Stankoven and Taylor Hall scored and Frederik Andersen posted the shutout. (espn.com) That quick swing is the point of the opening week of the Stanley Cup bracket: home teams try to turn two games into control of a series before the matchup shifts cities. Carolina now heads to Ottawa for Game 3 on Thursday at Canadian Tire Centre. (nhl.com) The pressure is showing up across the bracket. Philadelphia beat Pittsburgh 3-0 on Monday behind 27 saves from Dan Vladar and took its own 2-0 series lead, with rookie Porter Martone scoring in each of his first two playoff games. (espn.com) Tuesday’s schedule opened four more Game 2s with Montreal leading Tampa Bay 1-0, Buffalo leading Boston 1-0, Vegas leading Utah 1-0, and Colorado leading Los Angeles 1-0. (nhl.com) The first round began April 18, and overtime arrived almost immediately: Montreal’s 4-3 win over Tampa Bay in Game 1 ended in sudden death before Carolina and Ottawa pushed the postseason into its first second-overtime game two nights later. (nhl.com) For Ottawa, the margin is now one shot and one review. For Carolina, the series goes north with the lead it wanted and the longest game of this postseason already behind it. (nhl.com)