Overview
- Carolina, which rallied Monday after an early 2–0 deficit, beat Philadelphia 3–2 in overtime as Taylor Hall scored at 18:54 and Frederik Andersen made 34 saves to move the Hurricanes to 6–0 in these playoffs.
- Coach Rod Brind’Amour said the team still has another level to reach, and defenseman Alexander Nikishin was cleared to return for Game 3 on Thursday in Philadelphia.
- Vegas opened its series with a 3–1 win over Anaheim in a Game 1 defined by a waved-off icing before Ivan Barbashev’s late go-ahead goal, a non-call Ducks coach Joel Quenneville angrily disputed as officials declined to comment.
- On icing, linesmen are instructed to make the call when chasers reach the faceoff-circle hashmarks, and a delayed wave-off in that moment can let players ease up and create an immediate counterplay.
- Buffalo is set to face Montreal next, with analysts pointing to the Josh Doan–Zach Benson line, Alex Lyon’s strong goaltending, and a needed power-play boost after a 1-for-24 first round as key factors.