Sarah McLellan

azcentral sports

When he’s looping through the neutral zone before unleashing a slap shot on net, Michael Stone looks exactly like the defenseman the Coyotes have tasked with patrolling their blue line for the past five seasons.

But once a scrimmage breaks out, as it did earlier this week during informal skates at the Ice Den in Scottsdale, Stone peels off from the action – a sign that his knee isn’t quite at full strength despite improving after having surgery to repair his left ACL and MCL in April.

“These four months (of) me not being on my skates, that’s probably the longest I’ve gone since I was 4 years old,” Stone said. “It was a little bit of an adjustment at the start, but it came back quickly. Just the quads burn, muscles that I used in the gym but not on the ice. It’s a completely different feeling, so that’s coming.”

Stone has been skating for a few weeks now, shooting the puck and performing skating patterns while avoiding contact drills. He’s also gotten used to maneuvering on the ice with a brace strapped to his knee.

“It was difficult at first because it moves around a little bit, but it’s been fine,” he said. “I don’t notice it once I’m moving around. I noticed it more when I’m sitting down on the bench.”

RELATED: Michael Stone continues to improve after knee surgery

Injured after getting tangled along the boards in a March 26 game against the Flyers, Stone isn’t on the road to recovery alone. Prospect Nick Merkley is also on the mend after having surgery on his right knee, and the two have been skating together at the Ice Den.

Merkley underwent surgery in March after tearing his ACL while playing with his junior team, so he’s about a month ahead of Stone’s schedule. The 19-year-old was cleared for contact Monday and hopes to be on the ice for rookie camp in two weeks.

“It’s good to have another guy out there pushing me,” Merkley said. “Obviously, I want to be better because I’m a month ahead, so that pushed me, too. It’s been really good. (Stone’s) been good. We’re kind of learning through this together, so it’s nice to have a guy with me.”

October 1 will be six months since Stone’s surgery and with that the minimum time it takes to heal, the 26-year-old is pushing to be ready for the start of the season Oct. 15.

“As long as I’m doing everything fine and we don’t have any issues, then I think that’s realistic,” said Stone, who signed a one-year, $4 million contract this summer. “But it’s so hard to tell because I’m still not doing game situations.”

A clear timeline of when Stone might be ready to return hasn’t been set as both the player and team continue to monitor his status.

And while Stone has developed into a top-four staple on the back end who can eat up regular minutes, the Coyotes certainly have ample options on defense to use while he gets healthy.

“He looks like he’s progressing well,” General Manager John Chayka said. “There’s just a reality of how long those type of injures take to heal, and you can’t rush them. It’s a biological thing where how long it takes for the surgery to hold. He looks good, but we’ll see how it progresses.”

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Time to talk

Center Martin Hanzal is eligible for a contract extension as he approaches the final season of a five-year, $15.5 million deal, and the two sides plan to discuss the issue soon.

Hanzal is poised to become an unrestricted free agent after his current contract expires.

“We’re going to get together before camp and talk about things,” Chayka said.

Despite missing time last season due to injury, Hanzal chipped in 13 goals and finished with a career-high 41 points. The 29-year-old is set to represent the Czech Republic at the World Cup of Hockey later this month.

RELATED: Coyotes announce training-camp dates

Ice chip

The Coyotes aren’t close to signing any players to a professional tryout for training camp but would consider the option if it made sense.

“You never know,” Chayka said.

Reach the reporter at sarah.mclellan@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8276. Follow her at twitter.com/azc_mclellan.