Stone recovery longer than thought, ready to play for Golden Knights

Mark Stone said he will be ready to play for the Vegas Golden Knights after recovering from a lower-body injury that took much longer than he thought to heal.

"I don't know exactly the day I got hurt, but I think it has been almost 10 weeks now," the forward said in remarks published by the Vegas website Saturday. "When I first got injured, I was gunning to be back in four weeks. It's crazy how things can turn, but I'm excited to be getting healthy and feeling at a 100 percent."

Stone did not play the final six games before the NHL season was paused March 12 due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus. After getting four assists against the Anaheim Ducks on Feb. 23, Stone played 19:03 against the Edmonton Oilers on Feb. 26 in his last game.

He scored 63 points (21 goals, 42 assists) in 65 games this season, his first full season with Vegas. He is one point from his NHL career high, set with the Ottawa Senators in 2014-15.

Linemate Max Pacioretty also was injured heading into the pause but said in mid-April he expected to be able to play if the season resumes. Coach Peter DeBoer also said forward Alex Tuch would be back from injury.

Vegas (39-24-8) leads the Pacific Division by three points over Edmonton and would qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs for a third time in its three NHL seasons.

"I'm good. Healing up," Stone said. "Still have a couple little obstacles to get over, but overall in a good spot. Just want to play hockey again."