Hannah Kirkell
Captain Mark Stone might not return to the lineup on Thursday when his Vegas Golden Knights host the Pittsburgh Penguins. His appearance at morning skate, however, gave the team a much-needed morale boost.
Stone missed the last six games after suffering an upper-body injury against the Penguins on March 1st. He skated with the team for the first time on Thursday, wearing a red non-contact jersey, but taking line rushes in his usual spot alongside Jack Eichel and Ivan Barbashev.
“[Stone] is the captain for a reason,” said Shea Theodore on Thursday morning. “He’s able to impact games in a way that a lot of guys can’t. It’s promising to see him out there, and hopefully he’s back soon.”
In their last six games without Stone, the Golden Knights have a 1-5-0 record.
“He really does it all,” Theodore said. “I feel like he plays the game the right way– you know, he doesn’t cheat. He’s able to pick the group up when needed, and it’s good to have him back in the locker room.”
On the ice, Stone is in the middle of a career year with 60 points in 43 games. Despite missing 22 games, he’s third on the team in scoring and fourth in goals.
“He’s our captain,” Brett Howden added after morning skate on Thursday. “He’s our leader; he’s a huge presence on and off the ice for us. When we do have him with us, in the room, it’s a big piece of our team.
“When he was out, it’s that next man up mentality,” continued Howden. “We all lean on each other for that, but he’s a hard guy to replace. He’s a huge part of our team– a great leader, and obviously someone that we want on the ice as much as we can.”
Head coach Bruce Cassidy called Stone a game-time decision on Thursday.
“He hasn’t been ruled out; he hasn’t been ruled in,” said Cassidy. “He was in a red sweater this morning. We’ll see how he feels and make that decision tonight.”
