There are 60 minutes in a regulation NHL game. Tuesday night proved that teams have to be alert for every last second.

Four of the league’s 10 games saw the tying goal scored in the final 15 seconds of regulation. If you’re wondering, that doubles the previous high mark of two from March 18, 2023.

The Anaheim Ducks started the drama Tuesday night in Pittsburgh against the Penguins. Winger Beckett Sennecke made his own bit of history by becoming the first rookie to score a tying goal in the final second while his team was shorthanded. Sennecke beat the buzzer at PPG Paints Arena after entering the offensive zone and stickhandling his way through traffic.

The goal was a beauty, although as senior Penguins writer Josh Yohe observed, perhaps Penguins’ rookie coach Dan Muse erred in having a couple of offensive-minded defenseman on the ice while protecting a late lead.

For those scoring at home, the Ducks defeated their winged brethren 4-3 in the shootout.

A shootout was also needed in UBS Arena in Elmont, N.Y., although the home team, the New York Islanders, won that one 5-4. In defeat, however, Vegas Golden Knights winger Pavel Dorofeyev snagged his team a point by scoring with 14 seconds remaining in regulation.

Though not as nifty as Sennecke’s tying goal in Pittsburgh, Dorofeyev deserves credit for his Johnny-on-the-spot instincts.

Oilers captain Connor McDavid did Connor McDavid things at Rogers Place in Edmonton. He scored two of his team’s three goals in the third period to help the Oilers get a needed point in an overtime 4-3 loss to the Buffalo Sabres.

Yes, we’re going to ignore the Oilers falling behind big at home and needing a comeback to earn a loser’s point against the lowly Sabres.

Why? The Oilers reached the Stanley Cup Final in the last two seasons. Also, McDavid’s second goal Tuesday is the reason they are the Western Conference’s first wild-card team as of Wednesday. There were two seconds left to play when McDavid put on his cape against the Sabres and sent the game to overtime.

From one Conn Smythe winner to another, Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar had some breathing room, at least compared to the tying goal by McDavid in Edmonton, when he scored one of his own Tuesday. Eight seconds remained on the videoboard clock in Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena when Makar fired the puck into the net.

Pay attention to Makar’s head fake. A mere hockey mortal might have gripped and ripped, but Makar was like, nah.

Filthy.

Alas, the Avalanche fell to the Predators 4-3 in the shootout. That means only the Ducks won while becoming part of NHL history.

Perhaps the takeaway is it’s better to be the team that’s ahead late in a game, even if the final seconds are when some wild stuff can happen.