Mark Stone, as captain of the Vegas Golden Knights, acquired to skate as much as Commissioner Gary Bettman, who introduced him with the Stanley Cup.
Stone then lifted the 34 1/2-pound trophy over his head, an unbelievable achievement for the veteran winger who just lately had two again surgical procedures in a span of 9 months.
“The look in my teammates eyes when I got it is one of the craziest feelings I’ve ever had,” Stone mentioned. “Just to know that I did it with my 25, 30 best friends makes it that much more special.”
Stone had a hat trick in Vegas’ series-ending Game 5 victory Tuesday night time, giving him 9 factors within the Cup Final towards the Florida Panthers.
“He’s a great leader: He’s really passionate in terms of how he plays,” basic supervisor Kelly McCrimmon mentioned. “The more you watch him, the more you appreciate him. … He makes the people around him better.”
Stone has been the Golden Knights’ chief since he was named the franchise’s first captain in 2021. He was additionally their largest commerce pickup after their inaugural season journey to the Cup ultimate in 2018 that ended with a loss to Washington on residence ice.
He made positive this ultimate led to 5 with the primary hat trick in a Cup-clinching win since Babe Dye in 1922.
“The way he plays, he’s just outstanding,” linemate and golf companion Chandler Stephenson mentioned. “Him leading by example tonight, there’s no surprise there.”
Stephenson mentioned Stone hasn’t been capable of play golf these days due to the again damage, which flared up in January. The workforce thought Stone would capable of rehab and return, then a setback led to surgical procedure and questions of whether or not he’d play once more.
He missed the rest of the common season however returned for Game 1 of the primary spherical.
“There was concerns that his career might be in jeopardy,” McCrimmon mentioned. “Real credit to him and the work that he’s put in.”
Stone was a point-a-game performer within the playoffs. But he’s additionally arguably the most effective defensive winger in hockey and was a giant a part of Vegas’ edge and physicality.
“If you see him and you stand beside him, there’s a reason why he’s as powerful as he is, so I don’t think he gets enough credit at the defensive side of the game for what he’s capable of doing,” teammate Alex Pietrangelo mentioned. “He does a lot of things away from the puck that go unnoticed.”
He was very noticeable within the playoffs and will likely be immortalized within the photographs and video of Stone lifting the Cup.
“I can’t even describe the feelings in my stomach right now,” Stone mentioned. “It’s everything you can imagine. The grind of an 82-game season, four playoff rounds, you grind and you grind and you grind and at the end of the day you’re the last team standing. It’s incredible.”
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