Devils forward Patrik Elias didn’t steal the Los Angeles Kings’ Stanley Cup puck.

Elias admits he grabbed the puck when Game 6 of the finals ended on June 11 at the Staples Center, but he isn’t sure what happened to it after that.

“I don’t have it. I have no idea where it is,” Elias told me today. “I grabbed it when the whistle blew. I had it in front of me and I picked it up with my stick. I went over to Marty (Brodeur) and then I sat on the bench and I think I left it there.”

Might he have tossed it into the crowd?

“No. I didn’t for sure,” Elias said.

Could he have given it to Brodeur, wondering if it might be the goalie’s last game?

“No.”

Elias understands why the Kings want the puck back so badly.

“I understand it’s a meaningful thing for them,” he said. “For me? No. Why would I want to keep a losing Stanley Cup puck?”

Kings president of business operations told L.A. Times columnist Bill Plaschke: “This is a big deal. We’ve got to get that puck back. If a Devil had it, he might not have been real happy with it. He might have thrown it into the stands. If one of our fans has it, we will make a deal with them to get it back. We need that puck.”

The NHL says it will investigate only if the Kings ask.

Elias said he doesn’t recall bringing it back to New Jersey in his equipment bag, but he’ll look again.

“I cleared out my locker and I don’t have it,” Elias said. “I’ll check my locker again tomorrow. I’m trying to remember what happened to it. I really don’t have it.”