Evgeni Malkin offered a rare type of celebration on Thursday.

A triumph in a shootout.

During a practice session in Cranberry, the Pittsburgh Penguins split into two squads and staged a shootout competition. Malkin’s outfit pulled ahead in the contest, prompting the veteran center to bang his stick off the bench wall and bellow “Yeah! Yeah!” as well as a handful of other unintelligible roars of delight.

Shootouts haven’t been a point of strength for the Penguins this season. Neither has overtime.

In total, the Penguins are 0-4 in games that go beyond the bounds of regulation this season. Broken down, they are 0-1 when contests are determined in overtime and 0-3 with regard to shootouts.

Along with their shootout competition on Thursday, the Penguins worked on their three-on-three play as well.

To be certain, their attention to the matter on Thursday was born more out of having a rare four-day break between games during an otherwise packed schedule and not necessarily an urgent focus on doing better past the first 60 minutes of play.

“Shootouts can be worked on,” Rust said. “Three-on-three, I don’t think we’re doing anything wrong. Obviously, we’d like to score more goals in three-on-three and win the game and not go to the shootout. Obviously, we can always be better. But this fell into a time (of the schedule) where we have an opportunity to work on some things. With a condensed schedule this year, it’s hard to work on everything. We’ve had some practice time and that’s just what we were doing.”

The Penguins have worked on shootouts a bit more often this season during practices under first-year coach Dan Muse. While it’s not quite a daily habit as was the case under former coach Dan Bylsma, it’s a far more frequent occurrence than with Mike Sullivan, Muse’s immediate predecessor.

It’s also not necessarily for the benefit of the shooters.

“It’s probably more as it relates (to) the goalie stuff,” Penguins forward Sidney Crosby said. “I don’t think it’s been a part of (the formal) team practice, but I think, as far as working with the goalies, we have done more breakaways. Whether it’s been breakaways or shootouts, I think it’s something that helps everyone. I mean, you don’t typically get a ton of breakaways, but you want to make them count when you get them.”

Regardless of the circumstances, the Penguins just want to have more success in overtime and shootouts. A big part of that would simply come from winning in overtime to avoid a shootout.

“Puck possession is huge,” Crosby said. “Line changes are massive. I think just getting in the habit of trying to recognize the opportunities for that. Trying to keep tired groups on the ice and making sure that we make the most of our changes, so that we get fresh guys and allow ourselves to give ourselves the best chance to win games and close them out.”

Tomasino remains

AP In nine games this season, Penguins forward Philip Tomasino has one assist.  

Penguins forward Philip Tomasino participated in practice Thursday, a day after he cleared waivers.

He is eligible to be assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League, but for the time being, there is little to indicate management will send him to Northeast Pennsylvania.

Tomasino is simply relieved to still be a part of the organization.

“I love it here,” Tomasino said. “From day one here, everyone involved — the coaches, the management, the guys, the trainers — is first class here. Everything here I’ve been grateful for, from day one. I think there’s still more to go here. I still believe, going forward, that I can help the team win. Whatever happened in the past is in the past and there’s still lots of time this year. Anything can happen.”

A regular happening for Tomasino this season is healthy scratches. He has sat for 10 of a possible 19 games while being limited to a single assist in the nine contests which he has dressed.

“Things haven’t gone the way I would have maybe planned this year, but there’s still lots of time for me to be a guy that can help our team win moving forward here,” Tomasino said. “Whether that’s now, 20 games from now or 40 games from now, that’s what I want to do.”

Crosby remembers Wild fan

Pittsburgh Penguins Members of the Pittsburgh Penguins pose for a photo with Minnesota native Weston Paszkiewicz following a 4-1 win against the Minnesota Wild at Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul, Minn. on Oct. 30.  

Following a 4-1 road win against the Minnesota Wild on Oct. 30, the Penguins hosted Weston Paszkiewicz, a native of Long Lake, Minn., in the visiting dressing room of Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul, Minn.

Paskiewicz attended the game as a guest of the Wild through Make-A-Wish.

As the Penguins celebrated their win, Rust presented the team’s player of the game trophy — a mining helmet — to Paskiewicz and the team posed for photos with him.

Tonight's player of the game helmet went to 10-year-old Weston Paszkiewicz, who’s battling leukemia and signed a one-day contract with the @mnwild through the Make-A-Wish Foundation ???? pic.twitter.com/C5Ra5gFIG0

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) October 31, 2025

Earlier in the day, former Penguins goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, an unofficial member of the Wild’s front office, had Paskiewicz tag along to stage pranks on the Wild’s players.

Weston and Flower really put the TRICK in trick or treat ???? pic.twitter.com/Np2vHPCr5b

— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) October 31, 2025

Paskiewicz died on Tuesday following a bout with leukemia. He was 10.

The Penguins’ impromptu meeting with Paskiewicz was arranged through Fleury with an assist from Wild president of hockey operations Bill Guerin, another former Penguins player.

“Those are opportunities that you don’t ever take for granted,” Crosby said. “And when you’re in those situations, I think you just try to make the best of those moments. Whether it’s somebody that’s going through it, or the family, the team’s involved, you just want to kind of be in the present and try to enjoy it and make the most of it.

“To be able to gather like that after the game, after a big win and things like that, it was a cool moment. And hopefully something that meant a lot to the little guy and to the family.”

Rest and recover

AP Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry has missed the past five games due to an undisclosed injury.  

Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry did not participate in Thursday’s practice. Currently on injured reserve, his absence was a designed component of his recovery from an undisclosed ailment, according to Muse.

The same applied to injured forwards Noel Acciari (undisclosed), Justin Brazeau (undisclosed) and Rickard Rakell (left hand), who did not skate before practice after doing so the previous two days. All three are also designated to injured reserve.

Rookie defenseman Jack St. Ivany, currently on the season-opening injured non-roster list due to a suspected right foot ailment, did hit the ice prior to practice.

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