There are only a few days left to the 2022-23 regular season, and the Vegas Golden Knights have only a game left to their calendar, taking place on Thursday. The Knights have already secured a playoff despite being without star forward Mark Stone for most of the season.
Stone hasn’t played since mid-January due to a back injury that has plagued him over the past few seasons. He had to undergo surgery at the end of January, he was since listed as out “indefinitely.”
But here’s the twist.
Earlier this week, the captain was back on the ice with his teammates, skating in a non-contact sweater, after reportedly making progress over the past few weeks.
But you know what this sounds like. This is the Nikita Kucherov controversy and the Golden Knights are caught in it since Stone has returned to practice with the team.
You may remember how Kucherov returned for the postseason after missing the 2021 regular season while being placed on LTIR. The move enabled the Tampa Bay Lightning to maximize their salary cap spending, and according to the rules, Kucherov was eligible to return for the postseason, but wouldn’t have been able to play in the regular season. Since players are not paid in the playoffs, Lightning GM Julien BriseBois was able to re-insert Kucherov into the lineup, despite being 18 million dollars above the salary cap.
With the Golden Knights’ current cap hit of over $96 million, thanks to $14 million in LTIR relief, it means when the playoffs start, they can activate Stone’s contract at a $9,5 M cap hit without any repercussions. Insider Frank Seravalli saw right through them and his report got people talking.
Do you think the league should put a cap limit during the postseason to prevent controversial moves like this?
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