Vegas Golden Knights forward Paul Stastny made his highly anticipated return to the lineup Friday against the New Jersey Devils.

Stastny was Vegas' big-ticket signing in free agency - inking a three-year, $19.5-million contract on July 1 - but missed the last 30 contests with a lower-body injury suffered during the third game of the season.

The 32-year-old tallied 53 points last season split between the St. Louis Blues and Winnipeg Jets and added 15 more in 17 playoff games before the Jets fell to Vegas in the Western Conference Final.

Stastny was expected to slot in behind William Karlsson as the Golden Knights' second-line center in hopes of providing some secondary offense. Instead, Cody Eakin's filled the role to date, which is partially due to Erik Haula's own prolonged injury absence.

The Golden Knights currently hold the second wild-card spot in the West with 37 points.