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Mark Stone ranked No. 13 wing in NHL Network’s countdown series

Vegas Golden Knights forward Mark Stone placed 13th on NHL Network’s Countdown series, “Top 20 Wings Right Now,” which was unveiled Sunday on the network.

Stone, whom the Golden Knights acquired in a deadline-day trade Feb. 25 from the Ottawa Senators, makes his debut on the countdown. The 2019 Selke finalist finished one spot ahead of St. Louis forward Vladimir Tarasenko, and one behind Philadelphia Flyers forward Claude Giroux.

“It’s not too often that you have a Selke [Trophy] nominee, a candidate that is a winger,” said NHL Network analyst Mike Rupp. “He does so much away from the puck. … The little subtle things he does you may not notice, but his teammates sure notice because he gives them second-chance opportunities in the offensive zone.”

The top recipient was Tampa Bay Lightning superstar Nikita Kucherov, the MVP of this past season.

It was a career season for Stone in 2019. He scored a career-high 73 points (33 goals, 40 assists), with 11 coming in 18 games with the Golden Knights. Stone was at one point the leading scorer in the Stanley Cup Playoffs with 12 points (six goals, six assists) in seven games. He scored his first career hat trick in Game 3 of the Western Conference First Round against the Sharks on April 14.

Here’s the rest of the list. Air your grievances if it’s too low, but Stone is in some pretty decent company nonetheless. It probably won’t be the last time he’s on the list with Vegas after signing that eight-year extension in March.

  1. Nikita Kucherov, Tampa Bay Lightning
  2. Patrick Kane, Chicago Blackhawks
  3. Alex Ovechkin, Washington Capitals
  4. Brad Marchand, Boston Bruins
  5. Mitch Marner, Toronto Maple Leafs
  6. Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton Oilers
  7. Johnny Gaudreau, Calgary Flames
  8. Artemi Panarin, New York Rangers
  9. Mikko Rantanen, Colorado Avalanche
  10. David Pastrnak, Boston Bruins
  11. Blake Wheeler, Winnipeg Jets
  12. Claude Giroux, Philadelphia Flyers
  13. Mark Stone, Vegas Golden Knights
  14. Vladimir Tarasenko, St. Louis Blues
  15. Taylor Hall, New Jersey Devils
  16. Jonathan Huberdeau, Florida Panthers
  17. Matthew Tkachuk, Calgary Flames
  18. Gabriel Landeskog, Colorado Avalanche
  19. Patrik Laine, Winnipeg Jets
  20. Phil Kessel, Arizona Coyotes