Pettersson scores twice 44 seconds apart and Canucks hold off Sharks 4-3

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Elias Pettersson scored two goals 44 seconds apart in the second period to snap a seven-game scoring drought and the Vancouver Canucks held on to beat the San Jose Sharks 4-3 on Monday night.

Kiefer Sherwood and Brock Boeser also scored for the Canucks, who ended a three-game winless skid. Quinn Hughes had two assists. Thatcher Demko stopped 26 shots.

Pettersson left the game early in the third period and didn’t return.

William Eklund, on a two-man power play, and Cody Ceci scored for San Jose, which is winless in five games (0-4-1). Luke Kunin also scored with 4.7 seconds left.

Yaroslav Askarov made 20 saves.

Canucks: Vancouver gave up the opening goal for the 18th time in 34 games. The Canucks have a 10-6-2 record in those games. Boeser, who had two goals in Saturday’s 5-4 overtime loss to Ottawa, scored in back-to-back games for the first time since Oct.17-19.

Sharks: North Vancouver native Macklin Celebrini, who San Jose picked first overall in June’s NHL draft, marked his first game in his hometown with a pair of assists. Eklund’s goal was the first San Jose power-play goal in two games.

The Canucks broke open a close game with three goals in 70 seconds in the second period. Sherwood and Pettersson scored just 26 seconds apart to give Vancouver a 3-1 lead. The Sharks argued for goaltender interference on Pettersson’s goal, but the officials didn’t agree. Petterson scored 44 seconds into the resulting delay of game penalty.

Hughes has nine assists in Vancouver’s last seven games.

Sharks: Host the Calgary Flames on Saturday.

Canucks: Host the Seattle Kraken on Saturday.

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

Vancouver Canucks' Elias Pettersson (40) and San Jose Sharks' Ty Dellandrea (53) vie for the puck during second-period NHL hockey game action in Vancouver, British Columbia, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (Ethan Cairns/The Canadian Press via AP)

San Jose Sharks goaltender Yaroslav Askarov (30) stops the puck as teammate Mario Ferraro (38) and Vancouver Canucks' Pius Suter (24) watch during first-period NHL hockey game action in Vancouver, British Columbia, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (Ethan Cairns/The Canadian Press via AP)

Vancouver Canucks goaltender Thatcher Demko (35) stops San Jose Sharks' Tyler Toffoli (73) during first-period NHL hockey game action in Vancouver, British Columbia, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (Ethan Cairns/The Canadian Press via AP)

Ottawa Senators goaltender Leevi Merilainen (1) stops the puck against the Vancouver Canucks during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Vancouver, British Columbia, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024. (Ethan Cairns/The Canadian Press via AP)

San Jose Sharks' Barclay Goodrow (23) and Vancouver Canucks' Tyler Myers (57) fight as Canucks' Elias Pettersson (40) and Derek Forbort (27) watch during first-period NHL hockey game action in Vancouver, British Columbia, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (Ethan Cairns/The Canadian Press via AP)

Vancouver Canucks' Quinn Hughes (43) and San Jose Sharks' Fabian Zetterlund (20) vie for the the puck during first-period NHL hockey game action in Vancouver, British Columbia, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (Ethan Cairns/The Canadian Press via AP)

Vancouver Canucks goaltender Thatcher Demko (35) stops the puck against the San Jose Sharks during first-period NHL hockey game action in Vancouver, British Columbia, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (Ethan Cairns/The Canadian Press via AP)

Vancouver Canucks' Elias Pettersson, center, celebrates after his goal with Carson Soucy (7) and Noah Juulsen (47) during second-period NHL hockey game action against the San Jose Sharks in Vancouver, British Columbia, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (Ethan Cairns/The Canadian Press via AP)

NEW YORK (AP) — The man accused of burning a woman to death inside a New York City subway train used a shirt to fan the flames, causing her to become engulfed in fire, a prosecutor said Tuesday at his arraignment on murder charges that could put him in prison for life.

Sebastian Zapeta, 33, who federal immigration officials said is a Guatemalan citizen who entered the U.S. illegally, was not required to enter a plea and did not speak at the hearing in Brooklyn criminal court.

Zapeta, wearing a white jumpsuit over a weathered black hooded sweatshirt, will remain jailed and is due back in court on Friday. His lawyer did not ask for bail.

Zapeta is charged with two counts of murder, accusing him of intentionally killing the woman and killing her while committing arson. He is also charged with one count of arson. The top charge carries a maximum sentence of life in prison without parole.

Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez called the attack a “gruesome and senseless act of violence” and said it would be “met with the most serious consequences.”

The apparently random attack occurred Sunday morning on an F train that was stopped at the Coney Island station. Police said Tuesday the victim's identification is still pending.

Authorities say Zapeta approached the woman, who may have been sleeping in the train, and set her clothing on fire with a lighter.

Zapeta then fanned the flames with a shirt, engulfing her in fire, Assistant District Attorney Ari Rottenberg said in court Tuesday.

Zapeta then sat on a bench on the subway platform and watched, police said.

According to Rottenberg, Zapeta told detectives that he didn’t know what happened but identified himself in images of the attack.

Zapeta's lawyer, Ed Friedman, did not speak to reporters after the arraignment.

Video on social media appears to show some people looking on from the platform and at least one police officer walking by while the woman is on fire inside the train.

NYPD Transit Chief Joseph Gulotta said Sunday that several officers responded to the fire and one stayed to keep the crime scene “the way it’s supposed to be" while the others went to get fire extinguishers and transit workers.

“Officers who were on patrol on an upper level of that station smelled and saw smoke and went to investigate. What they saw was a person standing inside the train car fully engulfed in flames,” Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said.

They eventually put the fire out, but “unfortunately, it was too late,” Tisch said, and the woman was pronounced dead at the scene.

Zapeta was taken into custody Sunday afternoon while riding a train on the same subway line after teenagers recognized him from images circulated by the police.

A Brooklyn address for Zapeta released by police matches a shelter that provides housing and substance abuse support. The shelter did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Federal immigration officials said Zapeta was deported in 2018 but later reentered the U.S. illegally.

The crime deepened a growing sense of unease among some New Yorkers about the safety of the subway system, amplified by graphic video of the attack that ricocheted across social media.

Overall, crime is down in the transit system compared to last year.

Major felonies declined 6% between January and November compared to the same time period last year, according to data from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. But murders are up, with nine killings this year through November compared to five during the same period last year.

Earlier this month, a Manhattan jury acquitted former Marine Daniel Penny in the chokehold death last year of an agitated subway rider. The case became a flashpoint in debates over safety, homelessness and mental illness on the system.

Policing the subway is difficult, given the vast network of trains moving between 472 stations. Each stop contains multiple entry points and, in many stations, multiple floors and platforms.

Sebastian Zapeta, accused of setting a woman on fire inside a subway train, appears in court in New York, on Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024. (Curtis Means/Pool Photo via AP)

Sebastian Zapeta, 2nd left, accused of setting a woman on fire inside a New York City subway train, appears in court, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Curtis Means via Pool)

Sebastian Zapeta, accused of setting a woman on fire inside a subway train, appears in court in New York, on Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024. (Curtis Means/Pool Photo via AP)

Sebastian Zapeta, accused of setting a woman on fire inside a New York City subway train, appears in court, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Curtis Means via Pool)

Sebastian Zapeta, accused of setting a woman on fire inside a New York City subway train, appears in court, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Curtis Means via Pool)

Sebastian Zapeta, accused of setting a woman on fire inside a New York City subway train, appears in court, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Curtis Means via Pool)

A suspect, identified by police as Sebastian Zapeta, is facing murder and arson charges in New York City for allegedly setting a woman on fire inside a subway train and then watching her die after she was engulfed in flames, police said Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (WABC-TV via AP)