When it looked like the Vegas Golden Knights would come out of Carolina with a 2-0 series lead, the Hurricanes came alive. A dramatic third period and Seth Jarvis' overtime goal tied the Stanley Cup final.
RALEIGH, N.C. – Game 2 of the Stanley Cup final turned on special teams and momentum, as the Carolina Hurricanes took a 4-3 thriller thanks to a power-play blast by Seth Jarvis early in overtime.
The fact it was Jarvis with the winner was a great sign for Carolina, as he had been struggling of late in the post-season.
Meanwhile, it was a tough hit for Vegas, as the Golden Knights seemed to have had the game all wrapped up with less than a period to go. What followed was a Carolina comeback, a failed coach's challenge that led to the Canes' go-ahead goal, a late equalizer by Vegas and the series-tying tally.
The teams took turns neutralizing each other's rushes in the first period, with great defensive sticks leading to turnovers.
By the middle of the frame, Vegas was still stuck on one shot on net, and things got worse for the Golden Knights when defenseman Brayden McNabb took a Nikolaj Ehlers slapshot right in the face. McNabb immediately skated off through the tunnel and went to a local hospital for evaluation, leaving Vegas with five blueliners for the remainder of the game.
But it was the Golden Knights getting on the board first, with improbable Conn Smythe candidate Brett Howden shaking off Sean Walker and wristing one past Frederik Andersen after being sent in by a fantastic air-mail pass from Mitch Marner.
At the other end, Dylan Coghlan made a key shot-block for Vegas, earning himself a hug from goalie Carter Hart after the whistle.
The Golden Knights really looked in control in the second period, locking down the Canes and extending their lead when – who else – Howden fended off Jaccob Slavin and slid a forehand past Andersen.
Howden nearly got a third later in the frame when he stripped Jalen Chatfield of the puck and quickly put one on Andersen, but the Carolina netminder was there for the stop this time.
For the first half of the third period, the result looked like a foregone conclusion. Vegas was simply unflappable, and the Canes didn't look very threatening.
But a prolonged shift in the offensive zone midway through seemed to spark Carolina.
While they didn't score then, they finally struck after an ensuing TV timeout.
Logan Stankoven stole the puck from Rasmus Andersson and put a backhand off Vegas D-man Jeremy Lauzon and past Hart to make it 2-1.
The crowd at Lenovo Center was amped, and about three minutes later, Mark Jankowski made them even happier when he roofed one to tie the game.
This is where it gets wild.
Vegas thought it had scored on a scramble initiated by Ivan Barbashev and challenged the no-goal call on the ice. They were rebuffed due to goalie interference, and instead of taking the lead back, the Golden Knights had to kill a penalty.
Carolina's moribund power play, of course, came to life, with captain Jordan Staal tipping a Shayne Gostisbehere point shot to give the Canes their first lead of the night.
With a minute and a half to go, however, and Jackson Blake in the box for interference, Vegas pulled Hart for a 6-on-4 advantage, and Mark Stone tied the game from in tight off a rebound.
So overtime it was, where Jarvis played the hero, pumping in a slapshot on the power play after Tomas Hertl had tripped Staal.
Just like that, the Canes were back in the series.
Game 3 goes down on Saturday in Vegas at 8 p.m. ET.
More to come, with post-game reaction.
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