DALLAS — Any questions about how Mark Stone would handle his first game in three months were quickly answered Monday night in the Vegas Golden Knights‘ 4-3 win over the Dallas Stars in Game 1 of the Western Conference quarterfinals.
How much time did Stone need before finding the type of comfort that allowed him to carve his place in an opening-round playoff game?
Try less than 90 seconds.
Stars forward Sam Steel was given a two-minute minor for high-sticking just 26 seconds into the first period. That created an opportunity for the Golden Knights power-play unit, which parlayed the Stars’ misfortune into a goal scored by Stone.
Within a matter of seconds, Golden Knights center Jack Eichel won a faceoff with the puck going back to Noah Hanifin at the point. Hanifin quickly threw the puck on net with Stone, who was at the net front, getting his stick on the puck for a 1-0 lead with 18:37 remaining in the first period.
“I was nervous. I think I’d probably be a little nervous if I played in all 82 games, right? It’s the playoffs,” Stone said. “This is what you play for, and once the game gets going, you realize why you play and why it’s so much fun to be out there.”
Stone’s opening goal was only the start to a night that saw him get booed at every moment. The context for why Stone — who had been out of the lineup since Feb. 20 due to a lacerated spleen — was perpetually booed goes back to his injury and what the Golden Knights did to compensate for his absence.
Stone’s lacerated spleen was the latest setback in what had been three injury-plagued seasons. He experienced back issues in 2021-22 then had surgery prior to the start of the 2022-23 season. He required another back surgery during that campaign, and it led to him being moved to long-term injured reserve.
Sending Stone and his $9.5 million cap hit to LTIR provided the Golden Knights the added flexibility to acquire Ivan Barbashev and Teddy Blueger at last year’s trade deadline, reinforcing a roster that then got Stone back for the playoffs.
Because there are no salary cap restrictions in the playoffs, the Golden Knights were able to add Stone to their active roster without a corresponding financial move.
Fast forward to this season: Moving Stone to LTIR created the space for the Golden Knights to acquire Anthony Mantha, Tomas Hertl and Hanifin at the trade deadline, with the idea that Stone could return at some point in the playoffs.
His return Monday was accompanied by a chorus of boos every time Stone touched the puck inside sold-out American Airlines Center. The need to boo Stone was so strong that he was booed while doing an intermission interview with ESPN after the first period.
Golden Knights forward and reigning Calder Trophy winner Jonathan Marchessault cracked a smile when asked about Stone’s performance amid the boos.
“I loved it,” Marchessault said. “I wouldn’t be more happy for any guy than him. He’s been going through a lot of adversity in the last few years, and the fact he comes back and he gets big goals like that, it’s unbelievable to have a guy like that on your team and especially as your leader.”
“I was nervous. I think I’d probably be a little nervous if I played in all 82 games, right? It’s the playoffs. This is what you play for, and once the game gets going, you realize why you play and why it’s so much fun to be out there.”
Mark Stone
Marchessault scored more than six minutes later to give the Golden Knights a 2-0 lead before Stars captain Jamie Benn cut the deficit to 2-1 with less than four minutes remaining in the first.
The Golden Knights responded less than two minutes later when Hertl scored a power play goal on an assist from Hanifin — both of whom will be forever linked to Stone.
Dallas would score to cut the lead to 3-2 late in the first, with Vegas pushing it to 4-2 off a Brayden McNabb goal a little more than a minute into the second period.
Being in a two-goal hole forced the Stars to become more aggressive in the offensive zone. Natural Stat Trick’s metrics revealed that the Stars’ shot-share was 57% between the second and third periods in 5-on-5 play.
Even with possession and the fact they doubled the Golden Knights in shots, the Stars struggled to score before Mason Marchment‘s long-distance offering slipped past Logan Thompson with 11:46 left in the third.
It took what was a stale American Airlines Center and turned it into an actively engaged atmosphere that was invested in whatever the Stars were doing to get a game-tying goal.
Attempting to get that score proved to be a challenge for several reasons.
Among those reasons? Stone.
Even with the goal he scored, his efforts in the defensive zone proved just as crucial. Stone, who finished with more than 17 minutes in ice time, logged three shifts over the final eight minutes to help the Golden Knights close out Game 1.
“LT wants that goal back, but he bailed us out in the second period and really calmed the game for us,” Stone said of Thompson. “I think that last five minutes, yeah, they’re throwing pucks at the net. But he’s able to calm the game, get some good covers for us.
“I thought our defense and our goaltending along with our centermen and our wingers as a five-, six-man unit did a good job of calming the game down and getting us to the finish line.”
Though it lacks the volume of teams in close proximity like the Eastern Conference wild-card race, the Western derby is no less wild. Sunday’s action will provide yet another clue as to who will earn the final spot in that half of the postseason bracket.
Heading into Sunday’s slate, the Minnesota Wild appear pretty well locked in to the the first wild-card spot, with 79 points and 29 regulation wins through 67 games. But who gets the second one?
Right now it’s the Vancouver Canucks, with 73 points and 24 RW in 66 games. They’re taking on the Utah Hockey Club on Sunday (8 p.m. ET, ESPN+). Once past that game, they’ll play eight games of their final 15 against playoff teams.
Next up are the Calgary Flames, with 71 points and 24 RW in 65 games. They are idle on Sunday and will play against teams currently in playoff position in nine of their final 17 contests.
Speaking of the UHC, following Sunday’s game against the Canucks, seven of the remaining 15 games are against current playoff-positioned clubs.
Stathletes gives the Canucks the best playoff chances of the group (31.1%), followed by the Blues (30.2%), Hockey Club (22.4%) and Flames (20.2%). The “prize” for the team that wins this race is likely a first-round matchup with the Winnipeg Jets, but upsets do happen!
There is a lot of runway left until April 17, the final day of the regular season, and we’ll help you track it all with the NHL playoff watch. As we traverse the final stretch, we’ll provide details on all the playoff races, along with the teams jockeying for position in the 2025 NHL draft lottery.
Points: 62 Regulation wins: 23 Playoff position: N/A Games left: 15 Points pace: 75.9 Next game: vs. WPG (Sunday) Playoff chances: ~0% Tragic number: 20
Points: 45 Regulation wins: 13 Playoff position: N/A Games left: 14 Points pace: 54.3 Next game: vs. CAR (Thursday) Playoff chances: ~0% Tragic number: 1
Race for the No. 1 pick
The NHL uses a draft lottery to determine the order of the first round, so the team that finishes in last place is not guaranteed the No. 1 selection. As of 2021, a team can move up a maximum of 10 spots if it wins the lottery, so only 11 teams are eligible for the No. 1 pick. Full details on the process are here. Matthew Schaefer, a defenseman for the OHL’s Erie Otters, is No. 1 on the draft board.
TOKYO — For two days in Japan, it’s the Hanshin Tigers who have looked like the class of the National League.
In another sign that Japanese baseball has never been better, the Tigers capped a two-game sweep over MLB clubs with a 3-0 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday at the Tokyo Dome.
Even more impressive, the Tigers didn’t give up a run in either game. Daichi Ishii recorded the final out, freezing James Outman for strike three on a 95 mph fastball to cap 18 scoreless innings in a row.
“These two days were priceless,” Hanshin manager Kyuji Fujikawa said through an interpreter.
Hanshin tagged two-time Cy Young award winner Blake Snell for three runs in the fourth inning when the first two batters reached base before Teruaki Sato smoked a three-run homer into the right-field seats, where a jubilant Tigers fan club erupted in celebration.
On the mound, right-hander Hiroto Saiki threw five dominant innings, giving up just one hit and one walk while striking out seven. Saiki struck out Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani to start the game and coaxed a harmless popup from the slugger in the fourth.
“Really good ballclub,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “I thought they played really good defense. They can handle velocity, good with the fastball. The starter [Saiki] had major league stuff. Good command, good split. And then Sato, he looks the part. He’s a really impressive baseball player.”
Saiki was one of the best pitchers in Japan last season, finishing with a 13-3 record and a 1.88 ERA over 167⅔ innings. The Tigers had a 74-63 record last season, which was good for second place in Japan’s Central League.
The Tigers started the two-game sweep with a 3-0 win over the Chicago Cubs on Saturday after 20-year-old lefty Keito Mombetsu threw five perfect innings. No Cubs player reached base until Miguel Amaya smacked a single through the infield in the sixth that just got past the shortstop.
Hanshin also dominated on the basepaths against the Cubs, going 3-for-3 on stolen base attempts.
“They clearly showed they can play at the top level,” Roberts said.
Japanese players have made a huge mark on MLB, particularly over the past three decades. Former Mariners star Ichiro Suzuki was recently elected to the Hall of Fame, and this week’s Tokyo Series features five Japanese players, including three on the Dodgers with Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki.
Skenes is coming off a dominant performance in his first season in the majors. The 22-year-old right-hander went 11-3 with a 1.96 ERA in 23 starts for Pittsburgh in 2024, winning the NL Rookie of the Year Award.
The Pirates posted a video on social media on Saturday that showed Shelton informing Skenes of his decision.
In the video, Skenes walks into Shelton’s office and answers a couple questions about how his bullpen went and how he was feeling. Shelton later got up from behind his desk and informed Skenes he would be starting March 27 at Miami. He shook hands with Skenes and gave him a hug.
“Congrats, brother,” Shelton said to the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 draft.
“Appreciate it,” Skenes responded.
The 22-year-old Skenes has been working on incorporating a cutter and a running two-seam fastball to go along with his blazing four-seam fastball.