2026 NHL Stanley Cup Final: 4 Takeaways From Hurricanes-Golden Knights Game 2

RALEIGH – It was looking like the Hurricanes were going to let another solid start go to waste in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final.

Vegas had them on their toes, up 2-0 in the game, with a 2-0 series lead within reach.

Instead, the Hurricanes became the first team since the 1944 Canadiens to overcome a multi-goal deficit in the final 10 minutes of a third period in the Stanley Cup Final. An absolutely wild third period featuring a two-goal comeback, a failed coach's challenge, and a late Vegas equalizer led to overtime. A Seth Jarvis overtime power-play goal ultimately gave the Canes the 4-3 win as they took Game 2 to tie the series.

"Somebody had to step up -- somebody had to make a play," Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind'Amour said postgame. "That's what happened...all of a sudden you get the building going...It's huge, right? We can start over. You get a new kind of shot of life; that's what it feels like. That's what we definitely needed."

Since the start of the regular season, the Hurricanes have only lost consecutive home games twice. They own the best win percentage after a loss in the NHL this season. Perhaps the resolve they've shown all season in this regard gave them the experience to rally for this epic comeback.

Here are the biggest takeaways from Game 2, where the Hurricanes added another overtime win (6-0) to their 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs resume.

Canes' Power Play -- and Seth Jarvis -- Finally Gets Going in the Nick of Time

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Andrei Svechnikov

The Hurricanes were having a dreadful time on their power play for most of these playoffs -- and all of this series -- leading up to the third period of Game 2. They were 7-for-60 in the postseason and 0-for-4 with just one shot in the Final so far.

Somehow, it all finally came together when the Canes needed it most. First came the all-important third-period equalizer from captain Jordan Staal on a power-play opportunity that came as a result of a failed coach's challenge from Vegas.

"We made a few adjustments. [The Golden Knights] don't give you much; they keep you to the outside," Staal said postgame. "When you're struggling (on the power play), you want it so bad, but for the most part it's always the next one. You never know when the power play is going to come up big for you, and it's going to have to continue to do that."

Then came the overtime dagger from Seth Jarvis, who had gone cold on the scoresheet and had been visibly frustrated throughout the first two games of the Final.

"It was huge to be able to contribute to the win," Jarvis said postgame, "even more so to get the power play going and follow Jordo [Staal]'s lead."

Jarvis' game-winner was the first game-winner in a Stanley Cup Final for the Hurricanes since 2006.

"You never want to lose two at home," he said. "To get that one is really good for the group headed into Vegas."

Carolina Comes Up With Epic 3rd-Period Rally

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"I don't know what to tell you," is something coach Rod Brind'Amour said three times after the game, shaking his head to a sea of reporters as he tried to find the words to describe the last 10 minutes of regulation.

The Hurricanes were staring at a 2-0 series hole, down two goals against a stingy-looking Golden Knights side.

"They got us on our heels, then the first 10 minutes of the third wasn't great," he started. "Then somebody had to step up. Somebody had to make a play, and that's what happened."

Goals from Logan Stankoven and Mark Jankowski less than three minutes apart revived Carolina from an unevitable task heading to Las Vegas to back in the series.

"Stanks makes a play; all of a sudden, you get the building going again," Brind'Amour said. "Then Will Carrier makes an unbelievable play. Then, Jank, great shot. All of a sudden the game starts over, and you go from there."

He ended up summing up the whole ordeal pretty well. The Hurricanes' ability to rally for the win when all momentum -- and most hope -- felt lost is going to be an absolutely crucial confidence booster for a team headed into enemy territory.

Just like they gave themselves a clean slate in Game 2, they've now given themselves a clean slate in the series.

Vegas' Goal Challenge Turns Game 2

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Frederik Andersen

We might be talking about this call for some time.

Golden Knights coach John Tortorella made an extremely gutsy decision to challenge a no-goal call with five minutes left in the third in a tied game, a decision that would lead to Jordan Staal's 3-2 go-ahead goal on the ensuing Hurricanes power play.

Tortorella defended the decision postgame.

"I saw a loose puck in front of Freddie. Our player stabbed it, didn't move the goalie, and it goes through and went to the other side," he said. "I'd challenge it 10 out of 10 games."

The league determined upon review that Ivan Barbashev shoved the puck into the net with his glove, and the no-goal call stood.

"I don't even know what to tell you, but what I do know is that when it's called a no-goal on the ice, it better be 100 percent to challenge it," Brind'Amour said. "That's the rule we go by. So, they called no goal on the ice; that's how it worked out."

Nobody Can Stop Brett Howden

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The Golden Knights acquired Brett Howden from the Rangers back in 2021 for defenseman Nick DeSimone and a 2022 fourth-round draft pick.

In classic Vegas Golden Knights fashion, a "misfit" type player bought low is leading the Golden Knights -- and all post-season skaters -- with 13 goals in 18 games. In even more classic Golden Knights fashion, Howden only had 12 goals in the entire regular season.

His two goals on three shots early in the game wouldn't end up winning the game for the Golden Knights, but they were the latest in a slew of examples of a trade acquisition paying off -- and then some -- for Vegas.

Howden is red hot, and we'll see what else he has left in the tank as the series shifts to Vegas.