Penguins have yet to make this Evgeni Malkin move amid uncertainty about his future

Less than 24 hours after the Pittsburgh Penguins were eliminated from the playoffs by the rival Philadelphia Flyers last week, the uncertain future of forward Evgeni Malkin started to spark conversations on local sports-talk programs that have continued into May. 

Malkin is set to become an unrestricted free agent before he turns 40 years old at the end of July, and the perception exists that Penguins president of hockey operations/general manager Kyle Dubas has no real interest in re-signing the three-time Stanley Cup champion. For a piece posted on Tuesday afternoon, Penguins reporter Josh Yohe of The Athletic offered an update on a situation that seemingly won't be resolved soon. 

How Penguins, Evgeni Malkin are handling awkward situation during the first week of May

"Sources within Malkin’s management team said that, as of Monday night, Dubas and Malkin’s representatives have not spoken since the Penguins’ season ended," Yohe wrote. "Malkin’s camp said it has opted to remain quiet while Dubas handles his end-of-season exit meetings and focuses on AHL Wilkes-Barre during its playoff series with Hershey. Malkin’s team plans to reach out to Dubas sometime this week to try to set a date for an in-person meeting to discuss a potential new contract."

Malkin raised eyebrows when he confirmed that he wants to continue playing in the NHL and could sign with a different team to achieve that goal. That said, Penguins captain Sidney Crosby and fellow franchise icon Kris Letang remain under contract and have made it known they want Malkin to return for at least one more campaign. 

ESPN stats show that Malkin finished the 2025-26 regular season ranked fifth on the Penguins with 61 points that he accumulated over 56 games. According to Yohe, "plenty of interested teams in win-now mode would likely line up for Malkin’s services" if Dubas decides to move on. 

Will Kyle Dubas truly decide whether or not the Penguins re-sign Evgeni Malkin?

Yohe mentioned that Malkin "figures to sign at a team-friendly rate if he gets a contract" from the Pens. 

"The Penguins’ new owners, the Hoffmann family, certainly would be in favor of a box-office attraction returning for another season," Yohe added about Malkin's status. 

For a Pittsburgh Tribune-Review article that also went live Tuesday, Mark Madden wrote that the Penguins' new ownership group won't want to look "heartless" regarding Malkin's future. Such a line could lead one to believe Dubas may be overruled if he wants to embrace a youth movement that would involve letting Malkin play elsewhere this coming fall.