Sebastian Aho would end up being the Game 3 hero for Carolina, as the Hurricanes stopped the Canadiens’ comeback attempt by winning in overtime.
The game marks back-to-back 3-2 overtime wins for the Hurricanes, as they’ve now stolen home ice advantage from the Canadiens, and have taken a 2-1 series lead in the Eastern Conference Final.
Game coverage
Shayne Gostisbehere opened the scoring for the Hurricanes 8:24 into the first period, after Mark Jankowski’s shot towards the net deflected off Kirby Dach’s stick toward Gostisbehere, who fired the puck past a sprawled Jakub Dobeš.
The Montreal Victoire were honoured for their PWHL Walter Cup victory during the game.
Mike Matheson would level the game for the Canadiens at the 15:28 mark, when he wristed a laser past Frederik Anderson after getting a pass from Ivan Demidov from below the goal line.
MIKE MATHESON TIES IT UP FOR THE CANADIENS ???? pic.twitter.com/IPp2DLgG0J
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) May 26, 2026
Taylor Hall would regain the lead for the Hurricanes less than a minute later, when he won a battle in front of the crease and was able to jam the puck into the net while falling to the ice.
Lane Hutson would level the game in the second period on a power play. Cole Caufield would break into the zone, before passing the puck to Hutson, who would pass it back to Caufield, before sending the puck back to Hutson, who would then fire a shot past Andersen to make it 2-2.
LANE HUTSON CAPS OFF A BEAUTIFUL SEQUENCE BY THE CANADIENS ????
TIE GAME IN MONTREAL! pic.twitter.com/cmolzzmGTe
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) May 26, 2026
Canadiens fans were nearly given a PTSD flashback of Carey Price’s 2014 injury against the Rangers when Sean Walker crashed hard into Dobeš late in the second period. The Canadiens netminder would get up and stay in the game while Walker was given a penalty for goaltender interference. However, to the dismay of fans at the Bell Centre, Jake Evans was also given a penalty after he tackled Walker for colliding with Dobeš.
The Canadiens thought they would get their first lead of the game in the third period when Noah Dobson held the blueline, before doing a quick give-and-go with Caufield, before skating the puck up the boards and sending a pass toward the front of the net for Juraj Slafkovský for the tap-in. However, Hurricanes’ head coach Rob Brind’Amour would quickly challenge the play as Caufeild was a step offside in the lead up to the goal, which was confirmed in the challenge, meaning the game remained tied 2-2.
After 60 minutes of play, the game would still be level, meaning for a second consecutive game, the Canadiens and Hurricanes headed to overtime tied 2-2.
In Game 2, the Canadiens tied a record that was set in 1978, which was the fewest shots on goal (12) in a playoff game that ended in overtime. The Canadiens managed that by not having a single shot in the extra frame. In Game 3, the Habs would once again enter overtime with only 12 shots on goal.
The Hurricanes would win Game 3 in overtime after the Canadiens failed to clear the zone. The puck would end up on the stick of Andrei Svechnikov, who would wrist a shot toward the net. The puck would end up deflecting off Aho, past Dobeš.
Dobeš would end the game making 35 saves on 38 shots, while Andersen made 10 saves on 12 shots while picking up the win.
The loss would be the first time in the playoffs that the Habs have lost in back-to-back games, and they now trail the series 2-1, with Game 4 at the Bell Centre at 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday, May 27.
Montreal fans briefly carry U.S. anthem after mic fails before playoff game
Prior to the game, Habs fans briefly carried “The Star-Spangled Banner” after the microphone cut out before the game.
Quebec singer Éléonore Lagacé and three backup vocalists began singing the American national anthem with no sound coming from the speakers.
The spectators at the Bell Centre then picked up the lyrics for about five seconds before the microphones came back on.
A stirring rendition of “O Canada” followed as Lagacé paused to exclaim “êtes-vous prêts, Montreal!” — which translates to “are you ready, Montreal!” — before hitting her final note.
Monday’s brief carrying of the anthem contrasted with last year’s Bell Centre reception for “The Star-Spangled Banner,” as fans loudly booed the anthem amid political tensions before a Canada-U.S. game at the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament in Montreal.
The response also comes less than a month after fans at KeyBank Center in Buffalo sang “O Canada” when a microphone failed before the Sabres and Boston Bruins played Game 5 of their first-round playoff series.
-With files from the Canadien Press
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