Double OT win gives Golden Knights 2-1 edge
Carolina Hurricanes right wing Andrei Svechnikov (37) celebrates his goal with right wing Seth Jarvis (24) and center Jordan Staal (11) as he steps over Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Jeremy Lauzon (5) during the third period in Game 3 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final series Saturday in Las Vegas. (AP Photo)
Golden Knights beat Hurricanes 5-4 in 2OT in Game 3 after blowing 4-goal lead 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. TED LINDSAY AWARD NEW YORK (AP) — Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers has won the Ted Lindsay Award as the NHL’s most outstanding player as voted by his peers. The league and the Players’ Association announced the honor Sunday. This is the fifth time McDavid has won it, tying Wayne Gretzky for the most in league history for the trophy, which used to be named for Lester B. Pearson. McDavid led all scorers this past season with 90 assists and 138 points. San Jose’s Macklin Celebrini and Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov were second and third in voting by members of the NHLPA.