The Vegas Golden Knights will be without one of their key players for the foreseeable future, as captain Mark Stone suffered a wrist injury in their game against the Calgary Flames. The Golden Knights noted that Stone is considered week-to-week and has been placed on LTIR.
“With Mark Stone on LTIR retroactive to Oct. 18, his first eligible date of return is Nov. 15 vs. Blues,” NHL insider Frank Seravalli wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Stone left the game early in the third period after scoring his second goal of the game. In six games this season, Stone has two goals and 13 points.
Though Stone left the game against the Flames, he may have injured his injury two nights before against the Boston Bruins, as he fell into the boards after winning a puck battle against Nikita Zadorov. Stone will now miss a minimum of 10 games and 24 days, according to the LTIR rules.
It will be interesting to see if the Golden Knights decide to sign someone, as they have $2.5 million in cap space.
Stone is in his eighth season with the Golden Knights and his sixth as the captain, helping lead the team to the Stanley Cup in 2023. Though he's known as one of the better players at his position, he has also dealt with several injuries throughout his career, as he hasn't played in more than 66 games in a single season since being with the Golden Knights.
The hope is that Stone can return as soon as he's off the LTIR, so he can continue to help the team compete this season.
The Golden Knights are currently 5-0-2 and are in first place in the Pacific Division. The next few games will tell if the absence of Stone is glaring, and if it is, they may have to sign some extra help until he returns.
