Penguins/NHL
Evgeni Malkin is expected to miss his fourth straight game Thursday night vs the red-shot St. Louis Blues. Malkin did not practice Wednesday with the main group but will travel with the club as he has an outside chance to be cleared to play as early as Saturday afternoon vs Dallas. Expectations, though, are for now that Malkin is tracking to return Sunday night vs Chicago.
 |  Practice Lines | |
|---|---|---|
| LW1: McGroarty | C1: Crosby | RW1: Rust |
| LW2: Dewar | C2: Rakell | RW2: Koivunen |
| LW3: Hayes | C3: Acciari | RW: Tomasino |
| LW4: Heinen | C4: Lizotte | RW4: Koppanen/Bemstrom |
The team has planned to pair Malkin with rookie Ville Koivunen on the second line and with an eye on next season, the staff has been intrigued to get a couple games look of the two together before seasons end. The coaching staff has felt Koivunen’s playmaking ability and willingness to let plays develop is an ideal match with Malkin who needs skilled players around him. Discussions between the coaching staff have also involved a possible McGroarty-Malkin-Koivunen line for a game or two.
Malkin who turns 39 in July, has 15 goals and 31 assists in 62 games this season. Entering the last year of his contract in 2025-2026, where Malkin projects in the lineup next season will depend To read this insider news, subscribe to get “Inside Access”!
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