The Hurricanes and Senators Just Played Hockey's Most Confusing Overtime, and the Offside Rule Destroyed Everything

The NHL turned what should be a simple rule into a complete disaster last night. In game 2 of the Hurricanes and Senators series, Carolina thought Mark Jankowski had just won the game in overtime at 2:42 of the first OT period. The benches cleared. The building was erupting. Fans were already heading to the parking lot. Then the refs threw the flag.

Thirty seconds before Jankowski's goal, there was an issue with Carolina's zone entry. Here's where it gets absolutely bonkers: the NHL ruled that Jordan Staal "had possession but not control" when he entered the zone before the puck fully crossed the blueline. Think about that for a second. Possession but not control. The ESPN broadcast didn't even show Staal receiving the pass, so we're all left scratching our heads trying to understand what the hell "possession without control" even means.

So Now the Rule is Broken Into Two Separate Concepts?

The only rule in sports that gets close to this level of chaos is the NFL catch rule. And somehow the NHL just merged both of those confusing disasters into one. You can have possession of the puck but not control? And that disqualifies the play if you cross the blueline? It's nonsense.

But here's the real kicker that will make you lose your mind: Jankowski's goal got waved off due to the offside call, but Carolina was still awarded a penalty shot. How does that work? If the play is offside, shouldn't everything that happens after it just disappear? Apparently not in the NHL's backwards universe. Goals don't count, but penalties still do. It's like the league went out of its way to make this even more ridiculous.

Jordan Martinook Gets Two Chances to Be a Hero

Martinook had to take that penalty shot first, and he didn't score. Nobody in that building thought he was going to win it that way. He's just not a penalty shot guy. Carolina probably would've loved a two-minute powerplay to close out overtime instead, but the hockey gods had other plans.

Then in the second overtime period, Martinook got his real moment to deliver, and this time he came through. The Hurricanes still got the same result, just one overtime period later. Ottawa got gifted a second chance at life after that insane offside call and still couldn't capitalize. That's how you know it's just not their time right now.

Rod Brind'Amour probably came close to losing it on the officials. We might never know what kind of chaos would've happened if that offside call actually cost Carolina the game. At least we don't have to find out.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.