Evgeni Malkin has become good friends with Alex Ovechkin and Evgeny Kuznetsov over the years, but that doesn’t mean the Pittsburgh Penguins star hasn’t taken a shot at his rival comrades a time or two.
During a 2016 documentary entitled Malkin: The Russian Penguin, the second overall pick from the 2004 NHL Draft took Russia Channel 1 on a tour of his house. Malkin showed off two gigantic iron statues he had of The Alien and Predator on the lawn of his Pittsburgh area home, which he jokingly nicknamed after the two then-Capitals.
Anna Kasterova (Malkin’s wife): Those things over there, they are like some kind of nightmare. I don’t know how to get rid of them. They’re disgusting.
Evgeni Malkin: What do you mean you don’t know how to get rid of them? You just lift them up and throw them away! Well, I was young and lonely. I needed someone to talk to. I just saw them in a shop, there were five or six of them. The predator, something…
Anna Kasterova: Why did you only get two of them?
Evgeni Malkin: Well, they were the prettiest. (Points to Alien.) That one is Washington Capitals’ number 8. (Laughing) Well, the furthest one. He is bigger.
Crew member: The other one?
Evgeni Malkin: The other one (points to Predator) is the rookie, number 92, the dangerous one. You can just tell he is from Chelyabinsk, right? That’s Evgeny Kuznetsov. He is pleased to meet you.
The documentary became Penguins canon when Pens fan @hazel3017 uploaded the brilliant video to YouTube and the dialogue was translated by friend Okapik. The statues got a bit more attention when Brennin, a former RMNB contributor, posted about it on her X account.
ok but the best thing about the geno/kuzy ~Drama is that malkin named his two "lawn ornaments" after ovi & kuzy
he wanted someone to talk to so he picked the prettiest alien/predator monsters money could buy & shipped them to the US
the bigger one is ovi, the smaller one: pic.twitter.com/hSvloL0Eu6
— b. (@youripides) April 6, 2018
someone: i don't like malkin
me: but have you heard about his lawn ornaments tho pic.twitter.com/aYwvubI3bx— b. (@youripides) April 6, 2018
the resemblance is uncanny pic.twitter.com/T7pkEqStb3
— b. (@youripides) April 6, 2018
Malkin’s precious lawn ornaments got more attention when they were reposted by Bleacher Report’s social media team in July.
Fun Fact: Evgeni Malkin has statues of Alien and Predator outside his home named Ovi and Kuznetsov 😭
(h/t @youripides, @SibneyCrombsy) pic.twitter.com/dYudrohrnr
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) July 18, 2024
Naturally, Match TV then asked Malkin about the monstrosities in an August interview.
The dialogue, as translated by Google Translate, is below:
Is it true that in your garden at home in Pittsburgh there are two iron statues that you named Kuzya and Ovi?
Evgeni Malkin: No, it’s just that when Ovechkin and Kuznetsov came to dinner with us, Ovi asked: “What are these statues?” I answered: “Well, these are Kuzya and Ovi. Sometimes I practice on them, throw pucks at them.” But someone posted this joke on a social network, and everything started from there.
These are actually Alien and Predator statues from the movie. When we were on holiday in Dubai, I saw them in a shop, bought them and they were mailed to me. But I definitely didn’t give them names. They already have them – Alien and Predator.
Malkin, who earlier in his career did not get along with Ovechkin, turned serious in the chat and did go on to give high praise to the Capitals’ captain.
“Everyone makes fun of each other, teases each other, and that’s normal. Sasha and I are no exception,” Malkin said. “Moreover, we have already proved everything to each other. Ovi has won a bunch of individual awards, the Stanley Cup. I have also had some success in my career. We are accomplished fathers, and we respect each other as hockey players and as friends. We communicate well.
“Ovi invited me to his gala match, which will take place on August 10 in Mytishchi. He has a children’s tournament there, and I will be happy to come. We try to support each other. I think I can consider him – as he does me – a great friend.”
