Selfish play from Evgeni Malkin could have big impact on Penguins

The question now becomes whether or not he also gets hit with a suspension. That is always a mystery with the NHL's Department of Player Safety, because there never seems to be any consistency with what it does.

It is a play that should result in some form of supplementary discipline, but that sentence could have been written about a lot of plays this season that ultimately went unpunished. The Penguins play back-to-back games this weekend on Saturday and Sunday, so any decision will likely come on Friday.

The bigger issue for the Penguins — and Malkin — is what sort of short-term impact a suspension could have on their season. The Penguins are still in a good spot in the Eastern Conference playoff race, but they are facing a daunting schedule the rest of the way that is one of the NHL's toughest. They also do not have a definitive timeline on when Crosby will be able to return following the lower-body injury he suffered at the Olympics, though they did get an update on his recovery.

While the team has overachieved when compared to preseason expectations and has developed surprisingly strong depth this season, being without Crosby and Malkin for any stretch of games will be a concern. 

That is just one of the things that makes it such a recklessly selfish play by Malkin.

Not only does he have to be in more control of his emotions given the situation of the game at that point (it was still tied, 1-1), but he also cannot put himself at risk of missing games given the Crosby injury. Even without that aspect of it, there is no good excuse for that sort of reaction. It is not hard to avoid swinging your stick at a player's head. You just simply cannot do it.

Malkin and the Penguins have been a big story this week as he tries to get a new contract extension from the team beyond this season, but management has been hesitant to do so and seems to prefer to wait until after the season. Was this a form of frustration? Or did he just get caught in the moment in the heat of the game? Whatever the case may be, it was a reckless play that played a big role in impacting Thursday's game and could put his team in a tough spot over the next few games.