After up-and-down year, Boston Pride savor their league-record third Isobel Cup

The second thing Mara said?

“We’re winning the Cup again.”

It was an arduous but electric journey from that first skate to Monday night, when the Pride rallied from down a goal with less than 15 minutes left to knock off the top-seeded Connecticut Whale, 4-2, in Wesley Chapel, Fla., and capture their second straight championship in the rebranded Premier Hockey Federation.

“I’m elated,” said captain Jillian Dempsey after hoisting her third Isobel Cup, a league record. “On top of the world.”

Along the way, there were personal challenges.

Star defender Kaleigh Fratkin lost her father, Ron, in January. In March, forward Tori Sullivan went public with allegations of being sexually assaulted in 2015 while she was at Boston College.

There was roster churn, there were front office changes, and, entering the playoffs, there were five straight overtime losses that cost the Pride a first-round bye.

“We definitely had our ups and downs,” said Dempsey. “That’s where you really become battle-tested and that’s what builds that toughness you need down the stretch.

“If it was an easy road, I don’t think we would have responded as well to some of the adversity we faced.”

Drawing from their deep reservoir of playoff experience (69 games’ worth on the roster) the Pride rode a hot power play (6 goals) and fine goaltending from Katie Burt (.980 save percentage) through the first two rounds, dispensing with the Buffalo Beauts, 6-0, in the prelims and the Toronto Six, 5-1, in the semifinals.

“I think every player in that room, every staff member, knew what we were capable of doing,” Mara said. “We’ve known that throughout the whole year. Obviously, it didn’t click at points. But the last four or five days it clicked, and that’s when you need it most.”

Monday night’s showdown with a rising Connecticut team (15-3-2 in the regular season) was destined to be a grind.

“We knew we were in for a battle,” said Connecticut coach Colton Orr, a former Bruins right wing. “We knew it would be a tough one. They came out and worked and never quit.”

Dempsey got the scoring going when she danced through the Whale defense and finished a beautiful backhander past Abby Ives (26 saves) just 4:16 into the game.

“She comes alive in these big moments — she’s Captain Clutch,” Boulier said. “She’s our fearless leader. The bigger the moment, the bigger she is. It was so cool to see her get the first one for us.”

But the Whale answered with a goal from Methuen’s Amanda Conway before teammate Kennedy Marchment found Taylor Girard in front of the net for a 2-1 lead just 33 seconds into the second period.

It was the first time in the playoffs the Pride trailed, and circumstances were about to get more worrisome when Dempsey took a five-minute major for cross-checking 90 seconds later.

But thanks to Burt’s nine saves, the Pride emerged unscathed. With 45 seconds left in the kill, Boulier turned to fellow defenders Kali Flanagan and Fratkin and said, “Now we go. Now we attack them.”

The Pride started clawing back but were still trailing as the third period ticked away.

Mara never doubted.

“One hundred percent of our souls were going into that third period,” he said.

Dempsey got the tying goal started, finding Milton’s Mary Parker, a former Boston University forward, for a shot that rebounded to Evelina Raselli, who buried it with 13:23 left.

Just 17 seconds later, Taylor Wenczkowski tapped home the rebound of a Christina Putigna shot for her third goal of the playoffs and her second Cup-winner in as many seasons.

“It’s awesome,” said Wenczkowski, the playoff MVP. “I’m really happy to win again and share it with this group.”

The Pride blue line held off the Whale from there, and Burt finished with 32 saves. Defender Jenna Rheault added an empty-netter with 90 seconds left.

Not only are the Pride the league’s first repeat champions, they become the first franchise with three titles.

“I’m just incredibly proud of this group,” Dempsey said. “It was our mission to come back and win twice in a row. We had so much stacked against us and I’m incredibly proud of how we came together at the right time to get the job done.”