Mark Stone rescues Knights with OT goal in Philadelphia

It’s too late in the season for Mark Stone to get any Hart Trophy consideration, especially after all the time he’s missed.

But if you’re trying to decide who the Golden Knights’ MVP is through the first week of December, look no further than the captain.

Stone scored twice, including the game-winning goal with 2:13 remaining in overtime, and the Knights defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2 on Thursday at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia.

The Knights (15-6-9) have been on the wrong side of horrendous turnovers in overtime that cost them games. This time, the Flyers (16-9-4) had that honor.

Philadelphia right wing Travis Konecny gave the puck away in the Flyers zone. Jack Eichel held onto it while Stone, still on his backcheck, slowly strolled back into the offensive zone.

Eichel’s seam pass hit Stone at the backdoor for Stone’s second multigoal game of the season.

“Jack obviously forced a turnover, had some great poise with it,” Stone said. “Kind of made their guys flat-footed, I kind of just came down the gut there, and he made an incredible pass backdoor.”

Stone’s third consecutive multipoint game gives him 24 points through 14 games. He’s tallied a point in every game he’s played.

The numbers might be near the top of the NHL had Stone not missed 16 games with a wrist injury. The Knights went 6-5-5 without Stone. They’re 9-1-4 with him.

“Our sports science, medicine, skating coach, everybody, puts together an incredible plan that makes you feel at your best when you come back,” Stone said. “When you get put in with great players, that helps, too.”

Zach Whitecloud scored his first goal of the season, and Akira Schmid made 17 saves to push the Knights to 3-0-1 during this five-game road trip. Each game has needed extra time.

Thursday marked the Knights’ 13th overtime game this season, and they have a league-leading nine overtime/shootout losses.

“That’s a great thing to learn early on in the season,” Whitecloud said. “Even when they don’t go your way, just to see how the team reacts the next game or next night.”

Here are three takeaways from the win:

1. Stone and Eichel deliver

The Knights have gotten the necessary goaltending to make this trip successful. The stars have also shined.

Eichel had two assists to give him his fourth multipoint game of the trip. Stone recorded his third straight and seventh this season, meaning he’s scored more than one point in half his games.

It’s the second time in three games Eichel made the play on the winning goal, this time as a distributor. He scored the game-winner with eight seconds left in overtime Sunday against the New York Rangers.

“Great play by our best player,” Stone said. “It’s kind of what you need in OT. You gotta have somebody make a play, and he’s done it two of the last three games.”

2. Whitecloud’s beauty

A number of people looked up at 6:07 of the first period and thought it was Eichel driving the net and going forehand-to-backhand in close on Flyers goalie Dan Vladar.

Imagine the surprise when they went to celebrate and saw the defenseman wearing the bubble facemask.

“He looked like Jack Eichel going in there,” said coach Bruce Cassidy, laughing. “You can tell him that.”

Whitecloud didn’t celebrate scoring his first goal since Feb. 8. His stoic expression made it seem as if he had done it enough this season.

When Whitecloud was told that Noah Hanifin thought it was Eichel, Whitecloud laughed.

“I think that’s offensive to Jackie, skating half the speed as him,” Whitecloud said.

Whitecloud isn’t known for that kind of goal. Most of his offense is generated from the point or the half wall. Any chance he can get up in the play is welcomed.

“It’s not necessarily my job to score goals, especially that way,” Whitecloud said. “Any time you can kind of get up in the offensive zone and get in the rush and get involved, it’s something I’ve prided myself on since I got to this organization was being that two-way guy.”

3. Schmid keeps rolling

A low-event game was exactly what Schmid needed in his first start in almost a week.

Schmid got the call after Carter Hart started the past two games. It was the first time Schmid played since posting a 24-save shutout against his former team, the New Jersey Devils, on Friday.

Schmid’s only two blemishes were a backdoor finish from right wing Trevor Zegras at 16:11 of the first, and a one-timer from defenseman Noah Juulsen at 16:08 of the second.

Other than that, he made the saves necessary for his 11th win. He has earned points in 15 of 17 appearances.

“He gives us a chance to win every night,” Cassidy said. “I thought he wasn’t overworked tonight. I thought we played well in front of him. We didn’t get a lot of work, but when he needed to make a save, he did.”

Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.