Golden Knight’s Stone Has Back Surgery, Out Indefinitely

The Vegas Golden Knights have announced that captain Mark Stone underwent successful back surgery on January 31 in Denver, CO. with Dr. Chad Prusmack. Stone is expected to make a full recovery, but will be out of the lineup indefinitely after having his second back surgery in nine months 

Stone suffered the injury on Jan. 12 against the Florida Panthers, left the game, and did not return. He has missed the last eight games and the Golden Knights have subsequently gone 1-5-2 since his departure.

The 30-year-old right winger was off to a great start with the Golden Knights after he missed 45 games last season, also due to back issues. He was able to play in the first 43 games of the season for the VGK and score 38 points. He was a dominant two-way force and was beginning to re-establish himself as one of the premier, top-notch wingers in the National Hockey League before this unfortunate injury set him back yet again.

Stone was acquired by the Golden Knights via trade from the Ottawa Senators in Feb. of 2019. Since then he has gone on to be a franchise player for the VGK, playing in over 200 games with the expansion team and scoring 203 points. He was named captain of the team on Jan. 13, 2021.

It is likely that the Golden Knights will place Stone's contract on long-term injured reserve to free up $9.5 million in cap space. This will likely be used at the 2023 NHL Trade Deadline by general manager Kelly McCrimmon to add depth to the team for a Stanley Cup Playoff Push.

The Golden Knights have battled injuries this season similar to how they did last season with guys like Stone, Jack Eichel, Shea Theodore, and Alec Martinez all getting injured. Stone, Zach Whitecloud, and Daniil Miromanov are currently injured for the VGK. Only five players have played in every game this season.

The VGK are currently in the midst of their All-Star Break and will not play again until Feb. 7th against the Nashville Predators on the road.

Best wishes to Stone and his family as they go through another unfortunate perseverance stretch.