Bruins down Hurricanes in double OT

TORONTO — After being told to come back the next morning because another game lasted five overtimes, the Boston Bruins didn’t want to repeat history so quickly.

“We talked about trying to end this before the fifth overtime,” Patrice Bergeron said.

Bergeron accomplished that by scoring early in double overtime, and the Bruins beat the Carolina Hurricanes 4-3 Wednesday in Game 1 of their firstround series that was postponed 15 hours to a rare late-morning start.

The game scheduled for 8 p.m. Tuesday night began the next morning at 11 after the Columbus Blue JacketsTampa Bay Lightning series opener became the fourthlongest playoff game in NHL history. Playing all Eastern Conference games at Toronto’s Scotiabank Arena had this potential for games going long messing with the schedule.

“We knew it was a possibility,“said Bergeron, whose four playoff OT goals are the second-most behind Patrick Kane among active players. “You didn’t expect five overtimes, but that being said, we knew it’s part of having a tournament like this in one rink and be ready for the unexpected.”

Hurricanes-Bruins Game 1 wasn’t quite the same marathon with Bergeron scoring 1:13 into the second extra period. But it had plenty of theater from Carolina’s surprise scratches to a controversial goal and video review.

Much has changed since these teams met in the 2019 Eastern Conference final, but Boston continued its dominance more than a year after sweeping Carolina. The Bruins showed quick recovery from losing all three of their roundrobin seeding games and handed the Hurricanes their first loss since hockey returned.

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Game 2 is Thursday night.

Nathan Denette / Associated Press Bruins center Patrice Bergeron reacts after scoring the winning goal against the Hurricanes on Wednesday.