The Ottawa Senators were inches away from tying Game 1 against the Carolina Hurricanes after it was ruled that the puck never crossed the line on a glove save by Frederik Andersen.

Ottawa’s Drake Batherson was all alone in front when he deflected a shot on net. The Sens forward gathered the rebound in the crease and fired a second shot that was gloved by Andersen, who appeared to keep the puck out of the net. 

The on-ice officials immediately signaled a goal on the play. Refs Brandon Blandina and Wes McCauley headed over to check with league HQ to confirm whether the puck actually crossed the line.  This is a league-initiated review; teams cannot challenge to confirm if the puck completely crossed the goal line. 

The NHL’s Toronto-based Situation Room took another look at the play and overruled the call on the ice: No goal Ottawa.

The Situation Room initiated a video review to further examine if Drake Batherson’s shot completely crossed the Carolina goal line. Video review determined that Batherson’s shot did not completely cross the Carolina goal line.

The league’s decision was made in accordance with video review under rule 37.3:

The following situations are subject to review by the NHL Situation Room: (a) Puck crossing the goal line

While the standard for a Coach’s Challenge to overturn a call on the ice requires “conclusive” evidence to reverse the ruling, the rulebook does not specify a similar requirement for league-initiated goal reviews.

Referees for Game 1 between the Ottawa Senators and Carolina Hurricanes were Wes McCauley (#4) and Brandon Blandina (#39, making his Stanley Cup Playoff debut), with Ryan Daisy (#81) and Kyle Flemington (#55) on the lines.