Evgeni Malkin could end up returning to the Pittsburgh Penguins after all.
Tuesday, Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas held his Breakdown Day interview with the local media, revealing that the team was interested in bringing the Russian forward back next season — well, that is, if the two sides can reach an agreement.
“I had a great exit interview with Evgeny directly,” Dubas said. “And then subsequently have had continued discussions with his representative, J.P. Barry. The season that he’s had, where we’re at, where we’re going, I don’t look at our younger players and think they did enough to have it viewed like he’s blocking anybody out in that regard. So we would love to have him back. We just continue to work with J.P. on it. So I think that’s as clear as I can be.”
The 2025-26 season was Malkin’s final campaign in a four-year, $24.4 million contract ($6.1 million AAV) that he signed on July 12, 2022. Malkin is set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1.
Heading into the campaign, the Penguins were hesitant to extend the soon-to-be 40-year-old forward, but Malkin excelled in a move to the wing, posting 61 points (19g, 42a) in 56 games. The campaign marked Malkin’s first point-per-game season since 2022-23.
“I think he’s a special player,” Dubas said Tuesday. “Most people in this room have seen it far longer than me firsthand over 82 games. To me, I thought the key thing this year for him was he started off the year excellent. He had a newfound energy. He got hurt in December, and he came back from that in a great spot. And then, unfortunately, I mean, the suspension, you know, we don’t have to delve into that. But, you know, he’s suspended, and then when he was back from the suspension, came back again with the renewed energy.
“I just think it’s a natural course when, for some, you know, Sid is Sid. I think he’s in a separate category, and I tend to put Kris (Letang) in that as well. Just there’s the genetics and there’s the physiology that go with it, and I think those two are in a different bucket in terms of their bodies. Geno is built differently. The other part is he shifted away from center after the injury in December, and played on the wing, and I thought he and Tommy (Novak) and Egor Chinakhov had great chemistry. I think it helped reduce some of the load on him as well. So I think all of those factors play into it, but in the end, he’s one of the great players of all time, and I just think he’s a very, as everyone in the room knows, very proud, and I think all of those play into him having the season that he did.”
Just a week ago, Malkin painted an unclear picture of his future beyond his commitment to playing NHL hockey next season, even if for another franchise. Former Penguins forward Tyler Kennedy even suggested that his former teammate could land with the Washington Capitals and potentially play a season with Alex Ovechkin if the Penguins elected to let him go.
“It’s hard to say (what my future holds) right now, but we have time,” Malkin said at the time. “You know, it’s a long summer, and I just do same routine. I go back to Russia, stay with my family, my friends, and we see what’s going on. I probably talk to (general manager) Kyle (Dubas) today one more time before I leave, and we see what he think and talk to my agent after, but right now, nothing new for you guys.”
He added, “I want to play NHL, for sure, but again I know it’s not easy for Kyle, you know, maybe he wants like new blood here,” Malkin said. “I understand it’s business, and I understand he wants maybe new team, see new faces here. But for me, I want play one more year in NHL. I’m not looking back to KHL, play in Russia, but if not Pittsburgh, I hope some team.”
In their final media availabilities of the season, both Sidney Crosby and Kris Letang — the other two members of the Penguins’ “Big 3” — were adamant that they wanted Malkin back.
“I think it’s clear that I’d love to be playing with him for longer,” Crosby said. “So, we’ll see what happens. I think it’s pretty obvious that I’d love to keep playing with him.”
“We’re really close, all of us, like, me, Geno, Sid,” Letang said. “You know, you just want to keep it going. You don’t know anything other than that. You get so close with these guys that you want to keep it going.”
Dubas admitted that at some point, he realizes that he’s going to have to make some tough calls and be the bad guy to help move the team into the future.
“It’s obviously a special thing that the three of them have played together for such a long time,” Dubas said. “I think, at some point, I knew when taking the job that it’s me that’s going to have to make somebody, or the fans, unhappy with different decisions as they come. I knew that when I agreed to come here. I think, for me, the key is we always have to do what’s best for the Pittsburgh Penguins, even if that’s unpopular or makes people unhappy.
“That’s the way we have to operate. So, we’ll continue to field the team in the formation that we feel gives us the best chance to move ahead. If there are players that begin to pass by, regardless of who they are or how long they’ve been here, it’s incumbent upon me to make those decisions and do what’s best for the Penguins in the long run. But I know this is a very special situation, in terms of the nostalgia.”
