Penguins management intrigued by forward prospect Mikhail Ilyin

Mikhail Ilyin did not wait for the translator. The young Russian answered almost immediately.

When Ilyin, a Pittsburgh Penguins forward prospect, was asked who his favorite player was, he knew what to say, even in a language he isn’t overly familiar with.

“Evgeni Malkin,” he said with a slight smile. “Best player.”

The 20-year-old Ilyin did not have the best time trekking to Pittsburgh (Cranberry, to be precise) for the Penguins’ prospect development camp earlier this month.

A native of Cherepovets, a town that is roughly seven hours north of Moscow, Ilyin endured a series of misadventures Neal Page would find daunting. After being marooned at Newark-Liberty International Airport (N.J.), Ilyin wound up missing the first two days of camp, at least the on-ice portions of it.

“It was tough travel,” Ilyin said through a translator July 4. “Lots of flight cancellations. But finally, I am here in Pittsburgh.”

The Penguins selected Ilyin in the fifth round (No. 142 overall) of the 2023 draft. Nearly two years later, they signed him to a three-year entry-level contract May 31.

A left-handed shot, Ilyin (6-foot, 181 pounds), enjoyed a breakout season skating for Severstal Cherepovets of Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League.

In 64 games, he scored 30 points (seven goals, 23 assists) while averaging 15 minutes, 3 seconds of ice time.

7⃣ seconds in! Mikhail Ilyin scored the fastest goal of the season! pic.twitter.com/Es23fvkn66

— KHL (@khl_eng) November 1, 2024

His 30 points during what was considered his 19-year-old season (he turned 20 on Feb. 15) made Ilyin one of eight players in KHL history to reach the 30-point barrier in a single season as a teenager.

He was not satisfied, however.

“It wasn’t a bad season,” Ilyin said. “But (there’s) always something to grow (on). I can see myself with something to grow and have a better season.”

Ilyin is expected to remain with Severstal for the 2025-26 season before making a permanent jump to North America in 2026-27.

His skillset intrigues Penguins management.

“Really intelligent,” Penguins director of player development Tom Kostopoulos said. “Really good hockey sense. Puck skills. Playmaker. Decent scorer. … His hockey sense and intelligence is elite. That will be exciting.

“His skating is the biggest area that needs to come. He can get stronger and really work on that skating. He has habits of slowing plays down because he is so intelligent. We want him to play a bit faster.”

Ilyin offers a similar self-audit.

“My best (attribute) is I.Q,” Ilyin said. “I can see the ice. The (area) that I’ve got to definitely work on is speed. Skating.”

Potentially skating for the same team as his favorite player has obvious appeal to Ilyin.

“I followed (Malkin) up from childhood,” Ilyin said. “I even have a picture taken with Malkin.”

(Note: Ilyin spoke with reporters through long-time Penguins employee George Birman. When Malkin first arrived in Pittsburgh nearly 20 years ago, Birman served as his translator.)

No true timeframe exists for Ilyin to reach the NHL. But there is plenty of realistic hope that is easy to understand in any dialect.

“I don’t have any (specific) goals,” Ilyin said. “Just have a (good) season and come over here next year.”