STARK RAVING
The Penguins have a player who is plus-15, averages more points per game than Jake Guentzel, Mitch Marner, Sebastian Aho, Tage Thompson and Jack Hughes and wants to play next season on a discounted deal.
That might sound ridiculous, and in one way it is: Evgeni Malkin will be 40 by the time next season hits. Nobody that old should be doing what he’s doing.
This is what he’s doing: According to quanthockey.com, Malkin is on pace to be the second highest-scoring 39-year-old in NHL history in terms of points per game (1.114).
Alex Ovechkin, who averaged 1.123 points per game last season, tops that list. The only other 39-year-olds who have ever averaged better than a point per game were Gordie Howe, Johnny Bucyk, Jean Beliveau and Jean Ratelle.
That is truly elite company. I’m guessing few thought Malkin, with 39 points in 35 games, would be this productive at this age. I didn’t. He seemed to have finally hit a wall last season. The injuries had piled up. The mileage warranties had expired. The time seemed ripe for early retirement or maybe a farewell tour this season in the final year of his contract.
This kind of late-career production was supposed to be reserved for Malkin’s ageless and finely tuned teammate, 38-year-old Sidney Crosby. It won’t be surprising to see Crosby averaging a point per game at age 42. Or maybe 82 (and wouldn’t that be poetic: 82 points in 82 games for an 82-year-old Crosby, extending his point-per-game streak to 64 years).
But Malkin? His resurrection is stunning. And it goes far beyond the numbers. It’s the sight of him galloping like a younger Geno. The legs are back. It’s the rekindled joy in his game. The fun is back.
It’s the fact that Malkin remains a really good and sometimes dominant hockey player on a rejuvenated team. So when he piped up the other night in Edmonton and told reporters he wants one more year — and according to The Athletic would take a discount on his $6 million salary — my immediate thought was, “Why not?”
I don’t see a solid argument against the idea. Worst case, Malkin crumbles. His body breaks down. The franchise would survive. The Penguins have tons of salary cap space. They could afford a miscalculation here.
Best case, Malkin keeps playing at this level or slightly below. The fact that he’s been playing wing of late will only help the process. It’s necessary, actually. It’ll save his legs from all that dirty work deep in the defensive zone.
The Penguins could keep Tommy Novak as a second-line center or sign one to play with Malkin next season. It’s too early to speculate on all the options.
What’s important is that he won’t be blocking younger players — certainly not one who’ll step in and start outscoring the likes of Guentzel, Aho and Hughes.
The fact that Malkin, Crosby and 38-year-old Kris Letang are still teammates and playing good hockey is one of the remarkable stories in sports history. It has literally never happened that three teammates played 20 years together (Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada played 18 with the New York Yankees).
On Jan. 31, when Mike Sullivan’s New York Rangers visit, the Penguins will celebrate the 10-year anniversary of their 2016 Stanley Cup championship. Who would have predicted then that these three would still be together on a prospective playoff team?
At this rate, they might still be playing when the 2009 team celebrates its 20th anniversary in a game against the Red Wings.
It really is ridiculous, and it really is obvious on the Malkin matter:
One. More. Year.
