Mark Stone fires right back at Golden Knights' critics

The Vegas Golden Knights have garnered plenty of criticism in recent years not only for their ruthless treatment of star players and fan favorites but also for playing fast and loose with the NHL salary cap. 

This offseason, Vegas lost another franchise icon in forward Jonathan Marchessault, an original misfit from the expansion 2017-18 squad and the 2023 Conn Smythe Trophy winner. Following his departure to the Nashville Predators, he spoke openly about what he perceived to be a lack of interest from Vegas. 

Captain Mark Stone, who has been a central figure in Vegas drawing the ire of critics and how the Golden Knights operate the salary cap, knows that there is a target on their back.

"As I'm older I have realized that people are going to put a bullseye on our back because they want to see us fail," Stone said. "We haven't failed too much in our history. People want to see the Golden Knights crash and burn. But like I said, I think the foundation we built doesn't really allow for that to happen. So, I'm feeling confident.

"I think the team is excited to get back. We definitely have that chip on our shoulder. A lot of people in our industry don't believe that we can get back to the team that we know we are, but time will tell. We still believe that we're one of the teams that is going to training camp with the chance to win the Stanley Cup."

Stone, who has played a combined 136 games the last three seasons which include twice being placed on LTIR only to come back right before the start of the playoffs, said that he's excited to get back on the ice in preparation for the upcoming year. 

"I feel good. I was feeling great last year too. I was having one of the better statistical years of my career too until I had that freak accident," Stone said. "I’m feeling good and energized after an unfortunate long summer. I am excited to get back playing.

"People think I'm lying when I say I expect to play 82 games every year. Unfortunately, I’ve had some tough injuries that I've had to deal with along the way, but I think that just builds the adversity of what our team has gone through over the last number of years. I’m really excited to get the group back together, practicing again, and start to build from the ground up. Starting day one, adding onto an already strong foundation."

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