Seth Jarvis OT power-play goal lifts Hurricanes past Golden Knights

The Carolina Hurricanes tied the Stanley Cup Final in thrilling fashion, coming from 2-0 down to win 4-3 in overtime.

It was Seth Jarvis who was criticized for not being his usual performer in the playoffs; He had a one-time power play to send the crowd into a frenzy as he salvaged a home game before the Hurricanes hit the road.

This game looked like another chapter in Brett Howden’s surprising play-off series. The Golden Knights forward scored just 12 goals in the regular season, but his two-goal performance in this contest brought his postseason total to 13. He’s in clear contention for the Conn Smythe Trophy as the playoffs’ most valuable player.

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His first goal of the game came from Mitch Marner’s nifty floater down the ice. Whether he was trying to find Howden at the other end or just trying to clear his own zone is unknown, but it worked when Howden placed the puck and quickly fired a wrister past Frederik Anderson.

Then, just after Vegas’ power play ended, Game 1 winner Ivan Barbashev saw Howden hurtling toward the offensive zone and put the puck directly on his stick. Howden, who has been performing at a high level throughout these play-offs, made a tremendous move and slotted past Anderson for his second goal of the game.

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The Lenovo Center crowd was silenced when Howden’s heroics gave the Golden Knights a 2-0 lead heading into the third quarter. But the Stanley Cup Playoffs have a way of getting weird, and Game 2 was proof of that with a back-and-forth battle between these two teams.

Midway through the third quarter, the Hurricanes got the goal they needed from Logan Stankoven in a tight scramble for the puck behind the net, which Stankoven converted into a sweeping shot past Carter Hart. He got the crowd back into the contest and Carolina used that to their advantage.

Mark Jankowski scored his first goal of the playoffs by participating in a charge similar to Marner’s on-ice kick to Howden earlier in the game. Eric Robinson was trying to pass the puck to William Cartier, and as a result of the tilt effect, the ball fell right in front of Jankowski, who sent the ball to the goal from the right post. That’s right – tie game at Carolina.

Mark Jankowski of the Carolina Hurricanes celebrates a third period goal against the Vegas Golden Knights during Game Two of the 2026 Stanley Cup Final at Lenovo Center on June 4, 2026 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)

While the match was out of balance, both teams pressed for victory. While Vegas was trying to take a 2-0 series lead before returning home for Games 3 and 4, Carolina was trying to maintain home ice and avoid falling behind by two games.

Carolina looked like it might mount a comeback when Jordan Staal tipped Shayne Gostisbehere’s shot toward the goal during the power play, which followed the Golden Knights challenging a potential goal on Anderson’s sweeping save. It was a risky move by head coach John Tortorella, and it backfired as Carolina took a 3-2 lead with 4:35 left in the game.

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But Vegas soon found itself in the middle of the power play. But the Canes played it perfectly, taking just one shot before the Golden Knights killed it and regained its strength. Vegas had no choice but to pull Hart from the net and give them an extra skater.

Afterwards, Golden Knights captain Mark Stone said, not so fast, and tossed a puck to Anderson after Marner’s shot, tying the game at three apiece with less than two minutes left. And upon replay of the video, it appeared that it was Hurricanes defenseman Jaccob Slavin who accidentally shot the puck at Anderson, bouncing it off his shoulder and pushing it into the net.

Mark Stone of the Vegas Golden Knights reacts after scoring a goal against the Carolina Hurricanes in the third period of Game 2 of the 2026 Stanley Cup Final at Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina on June 4, 2026. (Jeff Bottari/NHLI)

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As a result, overtime was needed, and the first intermission in the overtime period came after Game 1 game-winning scorer Tomas Hertl was called for a fumble, sending the Hurricanes to the power play once again.

Carolina got it hurt and now Game 3 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas should be fun to watch because this series is off to a high-octane start.

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