Penguins' Evgeni Malkin confirms two big things amid uncertain future

The uncertain future of forward and Pittsburgh Penguins icon Evgeni Malkin hovered over the franchise long before the Penguins were eliminated from the playoffs by the rival Philadelphia Flyers this past Wednesday night. 

Malkin turns 40 years old in July and is set to become an unrestricted free agent. While speaking with reporters on Friday, he made it clear that he won't be riding off into the sunset of retirement this summer. 

Evgeni Malkin wants more with Penguins ... or a different team

"Now I want more, you know?" Malkin said about the Penguins participating in the playoffs for the first time since the spring of 2022, per Michelle Crechiolo of the team's website. "It's different emotion when you play playoffs. Fans are crazy. First game against Philly, in warmup, it's probably, like, 18,000 already here. Again, yeah, I want to play again, for sure."

Malkin is a three-time Stanley Cup champion who has played only for the Penguins since he made his NHL debut in 2006. Back in 2023, he, superstar captain Sidney Crosby and defenseman Kris Letang became the longest-tenured trio of teammates in North American professional sports history. 

Crosby and Letang remain under contract, and they haven't hidden that they want Malkin to stick around. However, Penguins president of hockey operations and general manager Kyle Dubas seemingly wants to embrace a youth movement sooner rather than later. 

According to DK Pittsburgh Sports, Malkin admitted on Friday that he is willing to sign with a different team during the offseason. Per Chris Cerullo of RMNB, Malkin has already been linked with the Washington Capitals due to his close relationship with Alexander Ovechkin. 

Is the Penguins' big three era officially over?

"It’s special two guys for me," Malkin added about Crosby and Letang. "Love to play together. And yeah, we're not happy we lost, but we try to fight every game. But sometimes, you're losing. But again, these two special guys. I hope we play together one more year, but if not, I have great 20 years together. And never forget."

Moving one from Malkin would be an unpopular move among many Penguins fans, but Dubas may not care about that after the club's playoff journey lasted just six games.