Ehlers' OT goal lifts Hurricanes past Canadiens in Game 2 of Eastern Conference Final

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The Carolina Hurricanes knew they had to play more to their style to get back into the Eastern Conference Final series against Montreal.

They got that most of Saturday night for Game 2, along with a huge performance from offseason addition Nikolaj Ehlers.

Ehlers got loose up the center of the ice and popped the puck past Jakub Dobes at 3:29 of overtime to lift the Carolina Hurricanes past the Montreal Canadiens 3-2 on Saturday night to level the Eastern Conference Final at one game apiece.

Ehlers scored twice for the Eastern Conference's top seed, the first with a highlight-reel individual effort in the second period against two Montreal defenders.

And when the game went to OT, the guy the Hurricanes landed as a sought-after free agent carried them to the finish line.

“He's a special talent,” Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour said, “and it was on full display tonight.”

The winning sequence started with a retreating Jalen Chatfield bouncing the puck back into the neutral zone to Mark Jankowski. Jankowski had a quick redirection to Ehlers entering the zone at full speed for a clean look at Dobes for the sudden winner.

“We didn't get a second breath,” said Dobes, who had 23 saves. “It was over pretty quick.”

As the puck hit the net, that sent a tense home crowd into a relieved but jubilant roar — along with a screaming Ehlers.

“I can barely talk right now, but I was yelling pretty loudly after that OT winner,” Ehlers said.

“It was a great pass ... and then just try to get some speed and get the puck off my stick as quick as possible and try to surprise the goalie,” Ehlers said. “Seeing that go in, seeing how the fans reacted was pretty cool.”

Eric Robinson also scored for Carolina, which improved to 4-0 in overtime in the playoffs — including 3-2 home wins in extra time during Game 2 in all three playoff series so far.

Carolina was facing massive pressure to regroup from Thursday's 6-2 loss in the series opener that only magnified the team's long-running troubles in the Eastern Final. Now the series is level as it shifts to Canada for Monday’s Game 3.

Josh Anderson scored twice for the Canadiens, the second coming at the 12:51 mark of the third period to ultimately force the overtime at 2-2.

The Canadiens won Game 1 by jumping on a Carolina team coming off an 11-day break after sweeping through the first two rounds — the longest wait to start a series in more than a century — for four goals in the opening 11 1/2 minutes. Montreal repeatedly got loose for clean breakouts and breakaways for high-danger chances against Frederik Andersen in that one.

But Carolina looked much closer to its earlier playoff form with is aggressive forecheck and defensive pressure, holding Montreal to 12 shots on goal and giving up far fewer of those quick transition chances the Canadiens kept burying in Game 1.

“It's hard to go 200 feet and produce offense unless you execute a little bit through that pressure," Montreal coach Martin St. Louis said. "I felt today we weren't terrible, we just weren't as good” as Thursday.

AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Carolina Hurricanes' Nikolaj Ehlers, second from right, celebrates after his goal against the Montreal Canadiens with teammates during the second period in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference final NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoff series in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

Carolina Hurricanes' Eric Robinson (50) reacts to the game wining overtime goal by Nikolaj Ehlers during overtime in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference final NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoff series in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

Carolina Hurricanes players celebrate after a goal by Nikolaj Ehlers as Montreal Canadiens goaltender Jakub Dobes (75) returns to the net during the second period in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference final NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoff series in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

Carolina Hurricanes celebrate a goal by Eric Robinson during the first period in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoff series against the Montreal Canadiens in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

Montreal Canadiens celebrate a goal against the Carolina Hurricanes during the first period in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoff series in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

Carolina Hurricanes' Taylor Hall (71) controls the puck with Montreal Canadiens' Jayden Struble (47) nearby during the first period in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoff series in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

Carolina Hurricanes' Sebastian Aho (20) controls the puck against the Montreal Canadiens during the first period in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoff series in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

CINCINNATI (AP) — Four years after considering retirement, Bryan Torres made it to the major leagues at age 28 and homered for the St. Louis Cardinals in his debut.

“Eleven years to get to here,” Torres said, fighting back tears after helping the Cardinals beat the Cincinnati Reds 8-1 in the opener of Saturday's doubleheader. “I’m not a homer guy. Today, my debut, it just happened. I’ve been learning to manage the pressure. When the heart is going too fast, you have to slow things down. I felt a little pounding in my chest today.”

Torres, who first played minor league ball in 2015, hit seventh and played left field.

With dyed blond hair and wearing thick eye black, he worked a full-count walk from Chris Paddack (0-6) in the second, singled on a cutter in the fourth, grounded out in the sixth, flied out in the seventh and homered on a 95.2 mph fastball from Jose Franco in the ninth, driving the 2-1 pitch into the first row of the right-center field seats.

“There’s not many words to describe this moment,” he said.

Cardinals fans at the game, many of them waving their shirts, kept chanting his name and three batters later induced a curtain call.

“All those guys bring us some energy,” Torres said.

Torres became the third Cardinals player since 1900 with multiple hits that included a home run in his debut, the first since Bobby Smith at Cincinnati on April 16, 1957.

“Pretty neat, man,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said. “There’s moments throughout the year that you take a step back and get to enjoy. That’s one of them. You could tell, even in his first at-bat, there’s a calmness to him in the box.”

Torres also played left field and batted seventh in the nightcap, going 1 for 4 with a single and a walk as the Reds won 7-6 in 11 innings.

Torres signed a minor league contract with Milwaukee in 2015, was claimed off waivers by the San Francisco organization in December 2019, became a free agent after the 2021 season and spent two years with the independent Milwaukee Milkmen of the American Association.

“I’m not going to lie, at one moment, I thought I’d retire,” he said. “In that moment, I decided I wanted to give myself a chance, and if I did, give it 100%.”

He signed a minor league deal with the Cardinals in September 2023, hit .331 with 28 doubles, two homers, 56 RBIs and 33 stolen bases at Double-A Springfield, then was promoted to Triple-A Memphis and batted .328 with 16 doubles, nine homers 51 RBIs in 2025.

He was added to the 40-man roster last November and played for Puerto Rico in this year’s World Baseball Classic, going 2 for 6 with a double, three walks and three runs.

“I’m going to try to get him out there as much as possible,” Marmol said. “This is a left-handed bat who understands the strike zone, finds a way on base, a real pesky at-bat. I like his skill set.”

Torres was recalled from Triple-A Memphis on Friday after hitting .336 with 10 doubles, two homers, 16 RBIs and 10 stolen bases in 36 games.

“I was in (the) clubhouse sitting in my seat and my manager, Ben Johnson, said: ‘I’ve got some good news for you. Bryan Torres is going to The Show,’” Torres recalled. “Everyone started yelling and jumping up and down. Some of them started crying with me.”

Several family members were at Great American Ball Park. His first call was to his mother, Lissette Crespo.

“Since I was a young kid, 4 years old, she lost all her weekends to bring me to the stadium,” he said. “During the week, she always (brought) me to the park to practice, to play.”

His parents traveled from Puerto Rico on Friday only for that night’s game to be rained out.

“It was very emotional. He was crying and when I received it I cried with him,” his mom said during the Cardinals’ telecast. ”That was a special moment."

Torres took the roster spot of outfielder Nathan Church, placed on the 10-day injured list with a left shoulder strain. He became the oldest position player to debut for the Cardinals since catcher Alberto Rosario at age 29 in 2016. Left-hander Nick Raquet debuted last season for St. Louis, also at 29.

“It’s been a very long and tough road, and not the usual road,” Torres said. “Everything happens for a reason. My family is very happy. We’re living the dream, basically.”

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

St. Louis Cardinals left fielder Bryan Torres catches a fly ball hit by Cincinnati Reds' JJ Bleday during the sixth inning of the first baseball game of a doubleheader in Cincinnati, Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

St. Louis Cardinals' Bryan Torres celebrates as he runs the bases after Torres hitting a two-run homer in the ninth inning of the first baseball game of a doubleheader against the Cincinnati Reds in Cincinnati, Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

St. Louis Cardinals' Bryan Torres celebrates hitting a single, his first career hit on his MLB debut, during the fourth inning of the first baseball game of a doubleheader against the Cincinnati Reds in Cincinnati, Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

St. Louis Cardinals Bryan Torres, wearing his MLB debut patch, walks from second base during the second inning in the first baseball game of a doubleheader against the Cincinnati Reds in Cincinnati, Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)