Belarusian teams play 9 periods in third-longest hockey game ever

Belarussian Extraliga teams HK Gomel and HC Neman Grodno dropped the puck at 7 p.m. local time last night and didn't see the game winner scored for another seven hours.

After 169:04 of play, Neman Grondo forward Krystian Dziubinski scored the 2-1 overtime winner to secure a Game 5 playoff series victory for Neman Grodno. The six OTs needed to determine the winner made it the third-longest game in hockey history, according to the IIHF.

Here's the game winner:

By comparison, the longest overtime game in NHL history took place in 1936 with the Detroit Red Wings topping the Montreal Maroons 1-0 after 116:30. The longest game in hockey history happened in 2017 when Storhamar Ishockey edged Sparta Sarpsborg 2-1 in the eighth overtime after 157:14.

“We all understood that it is also very difficult for goalkeepers to work for nine periods,” Dziubinski told the Belarusian Ice Hockey Federation website. “In the moment with the goal, I thought that a strong shot is the best thing to do in this situation. Not trying to outplay the goalkeeper with his hands, not going one-on-one, especially since the Gomel defender was already approaching me. I played from a simple one, and everything worked out!”