Friday’s “First Call” will quell concerns of those who were worried that Pittsburgh Penguins star Evgeni Malkin might get traded.

Or, on the other hand, it might anger those who wanted to see him moved.

Also, Tom Brady is scheduled for surgery. One outlet predicts that Antonio Brown is staying put in Tampa, while Le’Veon Bell may be moving on from Kansas City.

And the “GOAT” map yields some interesting results.

No movement for Malkin

For those of you wondering if the new Ron Hextall-Brian Burke Penguins brain trust will consider trading Penguins star Evgeni Malkin … don’t.

At least that’s what TribLIVE’s Mark Madden said to open his 105.9 The X radio show Thursday. Actually, he’s hearing Malkin may be getting a contract extension.

“Here’s what I’ve been told about the Penguins ‘rebuilding process’ under Ron Hextall and Brin Burke,” Madden said. “Sid ain’t going anywhere. We knew that. I’m also told Evgeni Malkin isn’t going anywhere. So, whatever Hextall and Burke do will not involve trading Evgeni Malkin. Not now. And not ever.”

Madden wasn’t done there.

“In fact, Geno is likely to get a three-year contract extension at the end of the season which would sync Geno’s contract up with the length of Sid’s. So any changes made by Hextall and Burke will be made around keeping Sid and Geno.”

Not only will that report serve as a volley to those pontificating that the change in management will lead to an eventual dismissal of Malkin, it may also tamp down recent speculation that Crosby may open himself up to the prospect of a trade to Colorado to play with Nathan MacKinnon.

Or any other location that may seem appealing.

Destination unknown?

In Wednesday’s “First Call” we gave you a bunch of potential destinations for some Steelers free agents, courtesy of Pro Football Focus.

Then it hit me. We didn’t check in on our good buddies, Le’Veon Bell and Antonio Brown!

So, I doubled back to the list to see where they are projected to wind up in 2021. And PFF suggests that Brown is the 29th rated free agent on the NFL board this year. The prediction is that he’ll stay in Tampa Bay for one year, $2 million fully guaranteed (with incentives that can raise the value of the deal to $4 million).

As for Bell, he is slotted at No. 89, with a likely destination of Miami for the Dolphins to sign Bell for two years at $10 million ($5 million total guaranteed/fully guaranteed at signing).

That’s not a lot for Le’V. But it’s plenty for a nice new jet ski.

Are we calling the election?

Normally, when I see a multicolored map of the United States, half of it is in red. Half is blue. It’s a Tuesday in November. I’m six beers deep and angry about what has become of the American democratic process.

This one is … somehow worse.

It’s the “GOAT Map” from BetOnline.ag. A state-by-state vote of who is deemed to be the “greatest athlete of all time.”

And, oh man. There’s a lot of Tom Brady states there. I see 20.

With Arizona, Texas, Florida, Michigan and Pennsylvania in his favor, I'm giving Brady the electoral college win pic.twitter.com/x93QdnsvJz

— Ben Volin (@BenVolin) February 11, 2021

Stop the count!

Meanwhile, I tallied 11 for Michael Jordan and 11 for LeBron James. And Serena Williams showed up stronger than Ralph Nader ever did, carrying four states.

Wait! Pennsylvania voted for Brady? Between Philadelphia Eagles and Pittsburgh Steelers fans, that sounds fishy to me. I think we should challenge those votes.

I mean, that usually works out well. Right?

After all, the balloting is flawed. The votes were counted through “geotagged Twitter data.”

I mean, not quite as bad as the electoral college system. But still not great.

Under the knife

The Tampa Bay Times is reporting that Super Bowl-winning Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady is going to go through minor knee surgery.

ESPN.com says it is unclear which knee is hurt and when it happened. Jenna Laine reports the surgery “has been planned for months.”

As Laine wrote, “Brady wore a brace on his left knee Wednesday during the Buccaneers’ Super Bowl boat parade. But wearing the brace is not uncommon for the 43-year-old Brady, who also wears it when golfing and during other recreational activities.”

She adds, “Brady was not listed on the Bucs’ injury report all season.”

That looks familiar

Former Penguin Jordan Staal did his best Bobby Orr impersonation Thursday night during a 5-3 win for his Carolina Hurricanes in Dallas.

OK. Not quite. But it wasn’t bad.

Jordo 4 Hart pic.twitter.com/TCVOeYsLxq

— Carolina Hurricanes (@Canes) February 12, 2021

Staal had an assist, too. He’s up to 11 points in 11 games so far this season.

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