Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin and development coach Sergei Gonchar are getting their days with the Stanley Cup this week, and on Thursday, the duo brought the championship trophy to Moscow’s Hockey Museum for a public ceremony. Thursday marked the first time the Stanley Cup sat side-by-side with the KHL’s Gagarin Cup.
While conducting an interview with Russian media, Malkin was asked about if he felt any sympathy for his championless-friend Alex Ovechkin. You may be surprised by his answer.
Evgeni Malkin and Sergei Gonchar are in Moscow. First time ever Gagarin Cup side by side with the Stanley Cup #Pens pic.twitter.com/ovxwZGllYk
— Igor Eronko (@IgorEronko) July 27, 2017
“I understand Alexander very well, he wants to win the Cup, and I think he still has everything to look forward to,” Malkin said to Sport-Express as translated by Igor Kleyner. “Washington, which is the team Sasha plays for, is an excellent team, and they always come up just a little bit short. But in sports, whoever is the best at any given time, wins. It’s just that I have been somewhat luckier than Ovechkin. But, regardless, Sasha remains a great player, who won many individual trophies and the Worlds. I hope Ovechkin eventually wins the Stanley Cup.”
The Russian machine has never had his name etched on Lord Stanley’s Cup despite winning three Presidents’ Trophies with the Capitals and three MVP trophies. During the last two seasons, the Penguins have eliminated the Capitals in the second round while en route to back-to-back championships. The 2016-17 playoff series marked the ninth time in ten tries that Pittsburgh has beaten the Capitals in the postseason all-time.
Earlier in the week, Ovechkin and Malkin teamed up to support Russia’s amateur Night Hockey League, an initiative started several years ago by Vladimir Putin.
In June, Ovechkin shared his happiness for Malkin’s success during Russia Day celebrations.
“I am just happy for him,” Ovechkin said. “I haven’t had a chance to congratulate him – there is a time zone difference, and they were probably celebrating. It’s nice when Russians win trophies.”
Malkin also voiced his disappointment about the NHL not participating in the 2018 Winter Olympic Games in PyeongChang, South Korea. He remained hopeful that there still could be last-minute negotiations that makes NHL participation possible.
“The likelihood of the NHL players going to the Olympics after Bettman’s statements is not very high, thus, our Sbornaya’s chances are very good. I would even call us the main favorite of the tournament,” Malkin said. “I wish our team all the luck, but still hope this story is not over yet. Maybe the league’s decision not to participate in the Olympics will change. I personally would like to play in Korea, because years go by, and there aren’t that many chances left to participate in Olympics.”
Malkin also addressed being snubbed on the NHL’s top 100 players list. Only four Russians were named to the NHL100, including Ovechkin, Pavel Bure, Pavel Datsyuk, and former-Capital Sergei Fedorov. Malkin has won three career Stanley Cups, and is already, at 30-years-old, the second greatest Russian playoff scorer of all time.
“Of course I was slightly disappointed when I found out I didn’t make the top 100 list, but I tried to discard those thoughts and just work during practices and games,” Malkin said. “We won the Cup again, in spite of all the problems we had, like missing players to injuries. And I think we fully deserved the victory. In my eyes, this trophy outweighs all individual awards and inclusion in various lists.”
As for how Malkin has celebrated with the Cup, late Thursday night the Penguins forward threw a party at Modus Cafe in Moscow. The Stanley Cup was used as a bowl to serve crawfish.
