Tom Wilson and Evgeni Malkin had a memorable moment in the latest iteration of the Washington Capitals-Pittsburgh Penguins rivalry on Friday.
During a second-period melee, Wilson got punched in the head by Malkin while being angrily hugged by Erik Karlsson. Already with a dance partner, Wilson could not escape and engage with the Russian superstar. So, instead, he did the next best thing: stick out his tongue sarcastically.
No one was penalized on the play, except for Capitals fans who were not given the joy of a Tom Wilson-Evgeni Malkin fight.
While Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby’s intense moments have gotten much of the attention in the past, Malkin has seemed to be the Penguins player the Capitals have fixated on the most, especially Wilson, to try and throw off his game.
In 2015, Wilson created an angry gathering after shoving Malkin during warmups. Years later, the two wrestled each other on the ice in a playoff game after Malkin landed a big hit on Wilson. The two also got into an expletive-filled chat after Wilson landed a big hit on Mark Jankowski.
During a 2018 regular season game, Malkin got ejected after a bad counter hit on TJ Oshie. The future Hall of Famer then grew irate with Evgeny Kuznetsov, who did the unthinkable: speak Russian to him.
“I don’t know why he started speaking to me in Russian,” Malkin said. “I don’t like that… Oshie was mad. We decided to fight. But you can’t speak with me if you’re sitting on the bench.”
Malkin utlimately got the last laugh on Friday, as the Penguins beat the Caps 4-2. The 38-year-old forward scored his fifth goal of the season — the 503rd of his career — in the third period, which stood up as the game-winner.
Back home in Pittsburgh, Malkin also has a loving tribute to Alex Ovechkin and Evgeny Kuznetsov: Alien and Predator statues he’s nicknamed after the pair.
