The Golden Knights should have enough skill to ice a competent power play without Mark Stone.

But the Knights have sorely missed their captain in the five games he’s been out with a right wrist injury, especially on the man advantage, and it’s cost them at different times.

The power play, which started 9-of-24, has gone 2-of-19 since, including a 1-for-6 effort in a 4-2 loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Friday

“I still think we can manage it,” coach Bruce Cassidy said Friday. “We’ve got lots of good people there, so it’s something we’ll have to fix.”

Stone was off to a strong start before going down with 13 points through six games. Eight of them have come on the power play.

The Knights’ power play runs through the right side with Stone and center Jack Eichel. Stone is the one surveying the ice from below the goal line when he gets the puck.

Stone has been the main distributor to center Tomas Hertl in front of the net, or sliding to Pavel Dorofeyev at the right circle for a one-timer.

But losing Stone has disrupted the flow. The Knights started with a five-forward attack with right wing Mitch Marner at the point. Now, Marner takes Stone’s spot and defenseman Shea Theodore has moved back to the blue line.

“I’m getting a little more comfortable,” Marner said Thursday. “I’m talking to Jack a lot, trying to be in places to make an easier pass for him down to me.”

One step forward, two steps back

Marner felt the Knights found success Tuesday against the Carolina Hurricanes. Dorofeyev’s power-play goal in the first period was their first in four games and it helped the team to a 6-3 win.

That progress came to a halt Friday against Colorado, the fifth-best penalty kill in the league. The Knights never got comfortable in their setup. They gave up two shorthanded breakaways on their first two power plays.

That can be attributed to Marner still searching for a rhythm down low. But Cassidy said the overall pace was an issue.

“We’re not winning draws like we used to,” Cassidy said. “(Friday) I thought our entries were slower than normal. We didn’t have much pace. That covers pretty much every area. That’s it in a nutshell.”

Not always right

Stone being a righty also plays a factor. He’s able to survey the ice while on his strong side. Marner being a right shot made that a seamless transition.

But the power play struggled so much Friday that Cassidy switched it up late in the game, putting center William Karlsson — a left shot — below the goal line and moving Marner back to the point.

Defenseman Brayden McNabb, who has one power-play point in his nine-year Knights’ tenure, played 37 seconds on the second unit Friday.

“We’ve used Mitch because he’s a right stick, but I don’t know how much he’s played there,” Cassidy said. “So it’s going to take a while.”

The Knights finally capitalized 2:51 into the third when Hertl scored to cut the deficit to 2-1, but it was a four-on-three. Dorofeyev was called for holding the stick 16 seconds into a two-man advantage.

“Normally, we don’t have that many power plays,” Hertl said. “We have to put one or two in. That was the tough part.”

The Knights are in a good spot, all things considered. They wrapped up October with points in all but two of their first 11 games and sit in first place in the Pacific Division.

Stone is on long-term injured reserve. He won’t be eligible to return until the end of the Knights’ current homestand, which continues Tuesday night against the Detroit Red Wings.

”We should be well rested. I would anticipate we should have a good homestand in terms of being ready to play,” Cassidy said. “We’re going to have to be on our toes.”

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

Up next

* Who: Red Wings at Golden Knights

* When: 7 p.m. Tuesday

* Where: T-Mobile Arena

* TV: KMCC-34

* Radio: KKGK (1340 AM, 98.9 FM)

* Line: Off; total off