Even Mark Stone’s wife laughs at her husband’s “medical situation”.

For the past few years, the Vegas Golden Knights have been playing with their payroll by using/maximizing the club’s long-term injured list (LTIR) at the end of the season.

This has helped them win the Stanley Cup in 2023.

This infuriates many people, of course. No one really complains in the NHL since everyone wants the chance to enjoy it, but publicly, fans of other teams don’t like to see it.

This opens the door to many jokes on the subject. The main one concerns Mark Stone. After all, every year he’s placed on the LTIR and magically ready to return to action in his team’s first playoff game.

Not everyone is Auston Matthews, say fans of teams other than Toronto. In fact, right now, even Toronto fans must be thinking the same thing.

But hey: the best joke comes from none other than Stone’s wife.

Hayley Stone posed with a fan wearing a #61 sweater… but instead of the name “Stone” on his back, he has the letters “LTIR” on his sweater. This is obviously in tribute to the Long-Term Injured list.

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In the end, many comments are not complimentary of Mark Stone’s wife, for whom the Knights’ payroll accounting issues are not her problem. Her husband gets paid anyway, whether he plays or not.

But at the same time, what did you want her to do? Refuse to take the photo and cause a scene?

No one in the NHL is putting the brakes on Vegas (whether we agree or not) for the excessive use of LTIR. So I don’t see why it should be the player’s wife who gets the first stone thrown at her.

In the end, it made me laugh.

In bursts

– Watching the playoffs, it’s clear that the Habs are missing a few things.

– To be continued in due course.

– Calling all interested parties.