Golden Knights' William Karlsson out for Game 6 as Hurricanes lead Stanley Cup Final 3-2

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Vegas Golden Knights second-line center William Karlsson will not play in Sunday's Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Carolina Hurricanes because of an injury.

Coach John Tortorella confirmed Saturday that Karlsson — whose injury wasn't specified but appears to be to his left wrist, arm or shoulder — was out for that game. But Tortorella wouldn't comment on his availability for a potential Game 7 at Carolina on Wednesday. The Hurricanes lead the best-of-seven series 3-2.

Tortorella also didn't offer insight into the nature of Karlsson's injury or what his absence would mean to the team. Karlsson has three goals and six assists in 15 playoff games this year with a plus-10 rating.

He was injured in Thursday night's 4-2 loss at Carolina.

“When we lose Bill, it kind of screws things up,” Tortorella said after the game. “We lost momentum when we went back to back in penalties. It was about the same time that we lost Bill. We’ve got to find a way.”

Karlsson missed nearly six months of the regular season to a lower-body injury, returning for the beginning of the second-round series against Anaheim.

Mitch Marner primarily played center when Karlsson was out. When he returned, Marner was mostly Karlsson's linemate at right wing.

“We'll see how it goes, but I think center-wise, you've just got to be a little more patient with being in the right spot, helping out on the walls, especially in this series,” Marner said. “We know we're playing a team that really likes to pinch down on you and try to make it hard to get pucks out or make that play.”

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

After years of preparation, a supersized World Cup has finally arrived.

This year's tournament — which is hosted by the U.S., Canada and Mexico — was expanded to 48 teams that will play in 16 stadiums in a record 104 matches over the 39-day tournament.

Mexico gets the World Cup started Thursday and will be a heavy favorite when it hosts South Africa in Mexico City. The second game of the day will be between South Korea and the Czech Republic in Guadalajara, Mexico. All four teams are part of Group A.

Canada and the United States will host their first games Friday. The Canadians will play Bosnia-Herzegovina in Toronto while the Americans face Paraguay in Inglewood, California.

Fox is the exclusive U.S. broadcaster of the World Cup with all 104 matches in English on Fox or FS1. All matches are also available on the Fox One app. Telemundo and Universo will broadcast all of the matches in Spanish. Peacock is the streaming home for Spanish language broadcasts while Telemundo also has an app that includes all the matches.

Boosted by a home crowd and a star-studded opening ceremony with performances that include Andrea Bocelli and homegrown talent like Alejandro Fernández and Maná, Mexico hopes to play better in this World Cup than in 2022, when it failed to advance out of the group stage for the first time since 1978. El Tri will be led by veteran Raúl Jiménez and 17-year-old midfielder Gilberto Mora. Goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa will be competing in the World Cup for a record sixth time. South Africa is playing in its fourth World Cup and first since it hosted the tournament in 2010.

The games in Mexico will be played at high elevation. The Azteca stadium in Mexico City is at roughly 7,300 feet while Guadalajara sits at 5,138 feet, meaning visiting teams will have to make a significant adjustment to the altitude.

South Korea is one of the best teams in Asia and has qualified for 11 tournaments in a row since 1986. The Koreans made it to the round of 16 in 2022 before losing to Brazil. Son Hueng-min, 33, is the captain and might be playing in his last World Cup. The Czech Republic is back in soccer's biggest showcase for the first time in 20 years.

FIFA has faced pressure for sky-high World Cup ticket prices and sales tactics that fans say left them with worse deals than they wanted.

The attorneys general in New York and New Jersey, which is hosting eight World Cup matches including the final, announced last month that they are investigating whether FIFA’s ticketing practices violated consumer protection laws.

Some seats for the July 19 final are going for nearly $33,000.

In the deeply polarized U.S., few things unite elected leaders outside the White House quite like skepticism of Gianni Infantino and FIFA, the governing body for the world’s most popular sport.

It’s a sentiment that cuts across the divide and spans from Washington to state capitals and city halls.

There are mayors like Zohran Mamdani of New York and Karen Bass of Los Angeles, Democrats who’ve balked at ticket prices. Republican Sen. Todd Young of Indiana, who played Division 1 soccer at the U.S. Naval Academy, said FIFA has been “detached from regular people around the world.”

AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-world-cup