Nikolaj Ehlers scores OT winner as Hurricanes tie series

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Nikolaj Ehlers got loose up the center of the ice and shot 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, who signed with the Hurricanes last summer after a stint with the Winnipeg Jets, 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 overtime, the player the Hurricanes landed as a sought-after free agent carried them to the finish line, easing the tension in Lenovo Center after an uncharacteristic 6-2 loss in Game 1, which was Carolina's first defeat of the postseason.

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

Eric Robinson also scored for Carolina. Josh Anderson scored twice for Montreal, which sent the game to the extra session despite just 12 shots on net.

The series shifts to Montreal for Monday's Game 3. The Hurricanes are 4-0 on the road this postseason.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.