LAS VEGAS (AP) — A four-goal lead in what has been a wacky, compelling and highly entertaining Stanley Cup Final nearly wasn't enough for the Golden Knights on Saturday night.

A four-goal, third-period rally by the Hurricanes nearly made NHL history and in process sent shockwaves through T-Mobile Arena.

And this game ended in a way perhaps befitting all the craziness, a shot from Vegas defenseman Shea Theodore off the skate of Brandon Bussi — the backup goalie put in the game in the third period after not playing for two months — that went into the net at 5:38 of double overtime to give the Golden Knights a 5-4 victory over Carolina.

“I have experienced a lot of games in playoffs,” Golden Knights coach John Tortorella said. “I haven't experienced one like this.”

Almost overlooked was the four-point night by Vegas' Mitch Marner, who also produced the fastest hat trick in Cup Final history.

The Golden Knights took a 2-1 series lead. The teams take two days off before meeting in Game 4 on Tuesday night in Las Vegas. Teams with a 2-1 series lead went on to win the Cup 46 of 57 times, or 80.7%.

Carolina had been 6-0 in overtime this postseason. The Hurricanes were trying to become the first team to win after trailing by at least four goals in the third period, but now clubs in that situation are 0-109.

“We just left our foot off the gas,” Theodore said on the ABC broadcast. “I think we have to be sharper in the third, but I liked the resiliency out of our group. I liked the way we started that second overtime, and I felt like we were more on our toes.”

This was the 10th time the first three games of a Cup Final were decided by a point. The last time was in 2016 between Pittsburgh and San Jose.

The Golden Knights seemed to have it in hand after scoring four times in the second, including a natural hat trick by Marner.

But Jordan Martinook, Taylor Hall and Jordan Staal scored goals for the Hurricanes. Their goals, occurring 39 seconds apart, are the fastest three in a Cup Final game.

Andrei Svechnikov jammed in a puck on a six-on-four power play with 1:42 left to force overtime.

“I love that we feel like we can come back from anything, but you can’t put yourself in a hole like we did,” Martinook said. “The second period, for them to come out like that and take total control of the game, it’s something that can’t happen, especially this time.”

Marner’s scoring outburst came over a 6:10 stretch of the second period, and he had four points in the period. He had the secondary assist on Tomas Hertl’s goal midway through the period.

The last time a player had four points in a period of the Cup final was in 1919 when Frank Foyston of the Seattle Metropolitans pulled off that feat.

Marner nearly added to the total in the third period, but failed to capitalize on a breakaway and a penalty shot. Those missed chances came back to bite the Golden Knights.

The Hurricanes made the comeback after changing goalies to open the third, going with Bussi, who made 18 saves. Frederik Andersen had given up those four goals on 16 shots.

Carolina also rallied without forward and former Golden Knight William Carrier, who had an upper-body injury in the second period.

Vegas’ Carter Hart stopped 29 shots.

Vegas twice thought it took the lead early in the second period, but the Hurricanes successfully challenged both goals to keep the game scoreless.

The Golden Knights received a major boost when defenseman Brayden McNabb took the ice. He took a puck in the face in the first period Thursday night at Carolina and didn’t return to the game. McNabb, who had on a cage to protect his face, is Vegas’ best defensive defenseman. He was on the first defensive pair with Theodore.

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WASHINGTON (AP) — If this was indeed the final home game of Alex Ovechkin's sensational NHL career, the Washington Capitals star collected enough memories to take him deep into retirement.

From the opening faceoff to the celebratory post-game skate in which he waved gratefully to the adoring fans, Ovechkin enjoyed one heck of a day, Best of all, the Capitals won Sunday to remain in the playoff hunt.

Playing in front of an appreciative sellout crowd, the Capitals beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-0. Ovechkin will wait until the offseason to decide whether to retire or return for a 22nd NHL season, but the fans weighed in early in the game by chanting, “One more year!”

Afterward, surrounded by his two young sons, Ovechkin had this response to that request: “I'll think about it,” he said with a wry smile.

Ovechkin turns 41 in September, but the league's all-time leading goal scorer with 929 isn't exactly limping to the end of his brilliant career. He leads the Capitals with 32 goals and 63 points, and he received an assist on the empty-net goal that clinched Sunday's pivotal win.

“It's a big moment for us right now,” he said. “Everybody was dialed in.”

The Capitals must win their regular-season finale in Columbus on Tuesday night and hope Philadelphia fails to win either of its remaining two games. No matter how it plays out, and regardless of whether he decides to come back or not, Ovechkin will always have this day to savor.

“I'll remember this moment, the atmosphere that was tonight,” he said.

It was no ordinary afternoon, and the Capitals knew it.

“You could tell, the game felt different and the night felt different,” Washington coach Spencer Carbery said. “A lot of great moments.”

It was an unusual game right from the start, when Ovechkin joined Pittsburgh great Sidney Crosby at center ice for the opening faceoff.

“The opening draw, I got a kick out of that,” Carbery said, before adding,. “I just caught myself watching in certain moments, taking it all in.”

It was the 100th meeting between Crosby and Ovechkin. Crosby and the Penguins have won more times than not, but Ovi has certainly made an impression on Sid the Kid.

“He came in with such high expectations, and he passed them,” Crosby said. “To be the greatest goal scorer of all time and to do what he's done, its impressive.”

Carbery hopes that Ovechkin will add to his lofty goal total in 2026-27, but regardless, the coach is thankful to have been associated with The Great 8.

“If it is the end of his career, I smile thinking of those moments because been blessed to be his coach when he broke the all-time goals record and I was the coach that was with him at the end,” Carbery said. “I don't take that for granted one minute.”

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PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Trying for any kind of divine intervention to reverse the fortunes of his favorite hockey team, Philadelphia Flyers fan Mike Culin skipped traditional good-luck gimmicks for a more heavenly approach: Gift Pope Leo XIV his own customized Flyers jersey on a family trip to Italy.

“I was like, what are you doing? This costs a lot of money,” said Culin's wife, Christine. “Do you really think you’re going to be able to reach the Pope to give him this? And he believed.”

Only Job suffered more than Flyers fans have for most of the last five decades, yet Mike Culin always kept the faith, both on ice and on high.

When the time came, Culin was ready for the ultimate one-timer — a shot at somehow getting the Flyers jersey with “ Pope Leo ” on the back and 14 for a uniform number (with apologies to the current No. 14, Sean Couturier) from Essington, Pennsylvania, to the Vatican and into the hands of the first U.S.-born pope, Chicago born and an avowed sports fan.

The Culins and their son, Jesse Gennett, and his wife and her parents made a family trip to Italy that included staking out a spot for the papal audience in St. Peter’s Square. The families lined up on March 18 with jersey in hand, hoping to catch Leo's attention as he wheeled by in the popemobile.

“That was the goal, just to get him to see it,” Gennett said. “We're like, alright, we need to be close to the side because that's where your best chances are that he'll see it. And he saw it. He pointed at it and kind of gave it like a thumbs up. It happened so fast.”

Christine Culin held the jersey high by each shoulder so the pope would spot it and her daughter-in-law asked for the jersey for a better chance to hand it off as the popemobile approached.

“For you! For you! For you! For you!” Gennett's wife, Valerie Giacobbe, yelled toward the entourage.

Sure enough, a member of the security team snagged the jersey, and it was passed off to a man who admired the jersey sitting in the ride behind Leo. The families hollered in celebration and got an extra moment for photos once the popemobile stopped so Leo could bless a couple of babies.

“He could have turned to the right and not even seen it,” Mike Culin said. “But he turned to the left and saw the jersey.”

Culin's wish was as much about getting the Flyers a little extra help down the stretch from a higher power as much as it was sending Leo a jersey.

“He thought the Flyers needed that,” Gennett said. “And they definitely did.”

With the ultimate man advantage, the Flyers won that night against Anaheim to start a three-game winning streak, part of a 9-4 record over that span to move into the Eastern Conference playoff field. The white smoke to signal a playoff berth hasn’t quite billowed out of the home arena just yet: The Flyers are clinging to a one-point lead for the final spot with three games left to play.

Some Flyers fans credit papal power for the streak while more secular fans believe it was indeed an arrival from above that sparked the turnaround: Canadian teen Porter Martone, who has a goal and four points in his first five NHL games.

The papal video made the social media rounds when Chris Gennett, a musician and Jesse's brother, posted the 60-second home video on TikTok.

The pope, the former Robert Prevost, is a known sports fan, especially of the Chicago White Sox. He attended the 2005 World Series opener against Houston in Chicago and watched as his beloved team beat the Astros 5-3 on the way to a four-game sweep and its first title since 1917.

But why would he point out a Flyers jersey? He did attend Villanova University near Philadelphia, where he received a Bachelor of Science in 1977. Maybe he attended a game or two at the old Spectrum and rooted on those ready-to-rumble Broad Street Bullies.

Culin said he would have worn the jersey — a family friend handstitched the name — as a kitschy keepsake had Leo not spotted the souvenir.

Perhaps in his quiet time, Leo has slipped on the size 52 jersey, just for fun.

“He had to see if it fits, right?” Culin said with a laugh.

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

NHL reporter Jessi Pierce and her three children were killed Saturday in a house fire in Minnesota, the league announced Sunday.

Pierce, 37, covered the Minnesota Wild as the correspondent for NHL.com for the past decade.

“The entire NHL.com team is devastated and heartbroken by the loss of Jessi and her children,” said Bill Price, vice president and editor-in-chief of NHL.com, in a statement. “Jessi’s love of her family and hockey was evident in the energy and passion she brought to her work for us. She was an absolute joy to talk to and work with. She will be deeply missed.”

Firefighters responded to a house fire Saturday morning in White Bear Lake, Minnesota. Neighbors called 911 and reported seeing flames coming through the roof. Fire crews located an adult, three children and a dog inside the house and all were deceased, the White Bear Lake Fire Department said. The department did not release the names of the victims in its statement Saturday.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

“Out hearts ache for those involved in this tragedy. We ask for the opportunity to allow our community to come together and support one another during this difficult time,” Fire Chief Greg Peterson said in the statement.

The Minnesota Wild mourned her loss on social media Sunday.

“Jessi was a kind, compassionate person that cared deeply about her family and those around her. She served as an ambassador for the game of hockey during her time covering the Wild and the NHL,” the social media post said.

Minnesota is known as the “State of Hockey,” and the Wild have had one of the biggest fan bases since their inception in 2000. The North Stars had moved to Dallas to become the Stars in the early 1990s.

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AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno in New York contributed to this report.

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL