EDMONTON -- Mark Stone was on the ice for the Vegas Golden Knights' morning skate prior to Game 4 of the Western Conference Second Round and will be a game-time decision against the Edmonton Oilers at Rogers Place on Monday (9:30 p.m. ET; CBC, TVAS, SN, TNT, truTV, MAX).
The 32-year-old forward and Golden Knights captain has been day to day since being injured at 7:08 of the first period in a 4-3 win in Game 3 on Saturday when he lost an edge at center ice and collided with the skate of Oilers forward Corey Perry. Stone played three shifts after the collision before leaving with 6:20 remaining in the period.
“You just have to keep playing, that’s what we did last night. He went into the dressing room and we kept playing,” Vegas forward Ivan Barbashev said on Sunday. “It’s not easy when [Stone] is not out there, but the guys started to play extra hard.”
Stone has eight points (four goals, four assists) in nine Stanley Cup Playoff games, including four points (two goals, two assists) in this best-of-7 series, which Vegas trails 2-1 after Reilly Smith won Game 3 by scoring with 0.4 seconds left in the third period.
“He’s doing all right,” Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy said of Stone on Sunday. “We’ll keep him as day to day. He wasn’t able to finish the game, we know that. Hopefully he’s better tomorrow and ready to go.
“I think he went into Perry there and it was awkward and he tried to play through it. That’s all I know from what I saw. That would be my best guess.”
The Golden Knights were down 2-0 when Stone left but rallied to tie it 2-2 on goals from Nicolas Roy and Smith 54 seconds apart late in the first.
“We would have liked to see him [Stone] come back. That didn’t happen, but you can’t worry about that,” Cassidy said. “You hope to see him walk back down the tunnel, but it didn’t happen, and guys just keep pushing. Reilly Smith is a right winger and got a little more opportunity out of it and took advantage of it.
"We’re a tight-knit group, and I think most teams at this time of the year are, that are still playing. Those guys have been together a while, they’ve been through a lot, won together, lost together a little bit. That certainly factors in. They want to give him any chance to rejoin the team, and we’re hoping that will be tomorrow.”
Stone scored twice in a 4-2 loss to the Oilers in Game 1, which moved him into a tie with Jonathan Marchessault for the most playoff goals (36) in Golden Knights history. He had 24 points (11 goals, 13 assists) during Vegas’ run to the Stanley Cup in 2023.
“He’s a leader, a smart player. He’s probably the smartest guy out there in the League,” Barbashev said. “I’ve been playing with him pretty much the whole season, and it’s been a pleasure to be on his left side. He’s a smart player, plays the right way. He’s just a good leader for our team.”
If Stone is unable to play Monday, the Golden Knights will be forced to try and continue to win without their first captain, a role Stone has held since Jan. 13, 2021. Vegas did not have a captain for its first three seasons.
“He’s an emotional leader, but we have other guys. That’s our team, we have a lot of guys in the room,” Cassidy said. “Other guys can pick up that part of it. It’s hard to replace what he does on the ice, but we have lots of good players and guys that have been in and out of the lineup.
“We’ll see different guys step up, and it sounds like a cliche, but it happens at this time of year where it’s the hand you’re dealt. That’s what happens, and I think our guys understand that. They’re a good professional group and do what’s required in the moment.”
