Recap: Svechnikov Strikes In OT, Canes Win Game 3

MONTREAL - Andrei Svechnikov's second goal of the postseason came 14:06 into overtime to push the Carolina Hurricanes past the Montreal Canadiens 3-2 in Game 3 of the 2026 Eastern Conference Final.

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For the third time in as many games this series, Carolina continued its trend of opening the scoring in the early stages of the contest. After a Mark Jankowski shot was blocked down low, the loose puck hopped right to an unmarked Shayne Gostisbehere for the inaugural marker at 8:24.

A Montreal response with 4:32 remaining in the stanza looked poised to send the two sides back to their respective locker rooms square; however, Carolina answered just 54 seconds later to climb back into the driver's seat. Once more, it was an activating defenseman jumping up in the play serving as a key ingredient, as K'Andre Miller found Taylor Hall at the far post to make it a 2-1 game.

The second lead of the night would last just 4:43 beyond the intermission, though, as an early second-period power play allowed a connection between Cole Caufield and Lane Hutson to reset the score. Play remained tightly contested throughout the middle stanza and into the final frame, but neither side could (legally) find a way to take the lead in regulation time, as a would-be go-ahead goal for Montreal was cancelled out for offside upon review.

Holding their foe to just two shots across the third period and overtime, the Hurricanes built on a few near-misses until Svechnikov finally found twine. After intercepting Hutson's breakout pass at the blue line, Svechnikov went to work down low to maintain possession. A cross-ice feed to Seth Jarvis in the left circle didn't stick to his tape, but Jarvis quickly returned the favor to his linemate up high for a quick-release wrister that whistled through bodies, off Jakub Dobeš, and into the top corner of the net.

Frederik Andersen once again faced a somewhat lighter workload, but his 11 saves on 13 shots featured several high-danger stops amid a tight contest.

Stats & Standouts

• Andrei Svechnikov scored his first career playoff overtime goal, becoming the eighth active Hurricane with a postseason OT game-winner for the club on his resume.
• Taylor Hall scored his fourth goal of the postseason as well as his team-leading 13th point. His 1.30 points-per-game average trails only Mitch Marner (1.40) among remaining NHLers.
• Frederik Andersen backstopped his 10th victory of the playoffs, reaching that benchmark in a single postseason for the second time in his career. His career high is 11 victories, set in 2014-15 with ANA.
• Shayne Gostisbehere tallied his first goal of the playoffs and the second by a Hurricanes defenseman.
• The Hurricanes became the fourth team in NHL history to win each of their first five or more overtime games in a single postseason. They joined the 2023 Panthers (7 GP), 2003 Mighty Ducks (7 GP) and 2011 Sharks (5 GP).
• Tonight was the ninth time in 11 playoff games (and third time this series) that Carolina scored first. They are 8-1 in those contests.

They Said It...

Sebastian Aho following the win…

“I thought that was our best game of the series, for sure. We were creating some offense, but also played really solid without the puck. We just stuck with it and were happy to get that goal there.”

Rod Brind’Amour sharing similar thoughts…

“I think we trusted our game. Especially tonight, where it was clear we were going pretty well. We didn’t really need to make many adjustments or anything. We just had to keep playing. It doesn’t always work out, but tonight it did.”

Taylor Hall on tonight being an example of sticking with it…

“They’re such an opportunistic team, and they make every scoring chance look like a Grade A, even if it might not be. We had a plan, and we stuck with it the whole game. We played a lot in their end. We forced them to defend, ice the puck, and roll our lines over. In the end, it worked out.”

Andrei Svechnikov on what’s allowed the team to be so successful in overtime during these playoffs…

“I really think it’s just the mentality of our team. We love tight games. Every time. We love them. We love staying above them and not giving them chances. I think that’s why we won in overtime.”

Rod Brind'Amour after another win for Frederik Andersen, in another low-event game for him...

"This is a tough game to play for him, believe it or not. You know, not getting a lot of action, and when you do, they were Grade-A variety. That's the right guy for us in this situation because he is just calm. Whether we're giving up 30 shots a night or whatever it was tonight (13), he's going to be the same. That's kind of what you want to see out of him."

What's Next?

The Canes are scheduled to be off on Tuesday. They'll return to action for Game 4 on Wednesday.

Next Game: Wednesday, May 27 | ECF, Game 4 at Montreal | 8:00 p.m. ET | How To Watch

Next Home Game: Friday, May 29 | ECF, Game 5 vs. Montreal | 8:00 p.m. ET How To Watch | Tickets | Parking