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Chaos reigns as game clock breaks in final minutes of Stanley Cup Final
The NHL somehow found a way to make games in the Stanley Cup Final even more stressful.
The Washington Capitals triumphed in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final to win the first championship of their 44-year history. It was a thrilling game bound to be replayed in Washington for generations, but there was only confusion for a solid chunk of the final two minutes in the series.
With around two minutes remaining in Game 5, the clock disappeared. For around a minute, the Capitals and Las Vegas Golden Knights fought it out with time being a mere theory.
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By Yahoo Sports’ own highly precise measurements, the clock stoppage on NBC’s broadcast lasted about 1:01 (one minute, one second) between when the clock went out at 1:49 remaining in the game and when it came back at the 0:51 mark. So the operators weren’t too far off, though they were probably a little nervous as the Golden Knights frantically tried to tie the game in the Caps’ zone in the final seconds of the game.
As for the game’s audience, social media immediately went berserk when people realized something had gone wrong with the operations of one of the most important moments of hockey. Here are some of the biggest reactions we could find.
Yelling and conspiracy theories reign in Game 5 of Stanley Cup Final
The clock froze in the arena and no one had any idea how much time was left. The Capitals were banging their sticks on the boards.
— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) June 8, 2018
Omg there’s no time on the tv clock?!!! #StanleyCup
— Hilary Knight (@HilaryKnight) June 8, 2018
People at this bar were pretty cool with the clock disappearing there.
— Chelsea Janes (@chelsea_janes) June 8, 2018
WHERES THE FiNG CLOCK???? ARE YOU KIDDING ME??????
— F.P. Santangelo (@FightinHydrant) June 8, 2018
Vegas clock operator pic.twitter.com/VYAbuYzHVl
— Greg A. Bedard (@GregABedard) June 8, 2018
It would be wacky if the Cup was awarded after a clock error
— Ken Pomeroy (@kenpomeroy) June 8, 2018
OK so without the game clock I realized I have absolutely no sense of time. That could’ve been three minutes or 15 seconds.
— Barry Petchesky (@barry) June 8, 2018
You have to figure Bill Belichick is taking notes on the pull-the-clock-in-the-final-minute move
— Bill Barnwell (@billbarnwell) June 8, 2018
Vegas arena timekeeper turning off the clock is an incredibly gutsy move for the team
— DL (@davelozo) June 8, 2018
The clock breaking with the Capitals seconds from their Stanley Cup is some quality B-movie material
— Bruce Arthur (@bruce_arthur) June 8, 2018
The city that has no clocks in the casinos has a broken clock in final minute of Stanley Cup
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) June 8, 2018
The clock disappearing in Vegas is just too on brand
— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) June 8, 2018
As if a clock would ever work in Las Vegas.
— Down Goes Brown (@DownGoesBrown) June 8, 2018
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