Golden Knights need returning players to get up to snuff fast

Mark Stone was honest after his first game in more than two months.

“Can’t say I felt very good,” Stone said after the Golden Knights’ 5-4 overtime loss Tuesday in Vancouver. “My lungs really weren’t there.”

The Knights’ captain was the latest returnee in what has been a welcome parade of key players coming off injured reserve. Defenseman Alec Martinez (March 26), defenseman Brayden McNabb (March 30), goaltender Robin Lehner (April 4) and left wing Max Pacioretty (Saturday) also returned recently.

Getting them back equals adding two top-six forwards, two top-four defensemen and one starting goaltender to the roster. It also creates an interesting dynamic. Yes, the Knights are overjoyed to have some of their best players back. But there’s not much time for them to get up to speed with the club’s playoff hopes on the line in the final eight games.

“We’re putting some fresh bodies back in, but also some guys who haven’t played in a long time,” coach Pete DeBoer said. “Timing and things like that are an issue. But we don’t have time to figure that out. We’re at the end here, so we’ve got to get the job done.”

Stone hadn’t appeared since Feb. 8 because of a back injury. Pacioretty had been out nearly a month with an undisclosed injury. The Knights are doing what they can to ease their transition back into the lineup.

Pacioretty and Stone have started on the third line while they get acclimated. Stone played 12:22 at five-on-five Tuesday, more than a minute below his season average of 13:34. Pacioretty played 12:12; he averages 13:36.

It makes sense that the two will need time to get into a rhythm, but the Knights don’t have much. They remain out of a playoff spot, and their next two games — Thursday in Calgary and Saturday in Edmonton — could have a huge impact on their postseason chances.

Any production they get from Pacioretty and Stone — who rank first (0.968) and second (0.966) on the team in points per game — would be massive.

“It’s do or die for us,” Stone said. “We got a little bit of help in the standings, but we’ve got to worry about ourselves and try to win those games.”

The Knights are in similar tricky situations with some of their other returnees.

While McNabb has gone back to his normal role on the second pair and played well, Martinez is on the third pair after his 53-game absence. Martinez and his strong one-timer have barely gotten any power-play time because the Knights want to ease him back into the lineup. Without him, the team is 0-for-18 in its past seven games on the man advantage.

Lehner also is trying to find his stride. The goaltender, who made only six starts in February and March combined because of separate upper- and lower-body injuries, is 2-1-1 with 13 goals allowed and an 0.888 save percentage in his past four starts.

“It obviously takes time to get your reads back,” Martinez said. “It’s impossible to create a game situation without stepping into one. I’m glad that we’re getting guys back. But you’ve got to have a short memory whether it’s a win or a loss. We need to do that for the next game.”

Contact Ben Gotz at bgotz@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BenSGotz on Twitter.