Penguins feel Evgeni Malkin proved his worth, earned new contract

Malkin did enjoy a bit of a renaissance season, helping Penguins president of hockey operations and general manager Kyle Dubas feel comfortable in running it back one more time with Malkin as part of the fold. 

Kyle Dubas feels Evgeni Malkin proved he's worth bringing back 

“Last season, Evgeni’s on-ice performance continually showed that he is able to produce at a great level and help the Penguins take strides. Off the ice, he showed tremendous leadership in helping our young Russian and Russian-speaking players adapt to our program and our city," said Dubas.

"Over the last several weeks, myself and (Penguins head coach) Dan Muse have had very open discussions with Evgeni and his camp about him returning for the 2026-2027 season, how his role will evolve, and what all of our expectations are at this stage of Evgeni’s career and the current stage in the evolution of the Penguins."

Evgeni Malkin recorded his highest totals in years last season  

Malkin totaled 61 points in 56 games, scoring 19 goals and adding 42 assists. Aalso finishing the regular season as a +13 and then scoring two goals and recording an assist in the playoff series against the Philadelphia Flyers, Malkin's season saw him put up better numbers across the board than one year earlier, and in fewer games played. 

Malkin's points-per-game metric was at its highest since the 2022-23 season, having recorded 67 points in 2023-24, but needing a full season's worth of 82 games to do so.

But in addition to proving he can still contribute, the Penguins were able to keep him around, at least for one more season, due to their salary cap flexibility — with just over $37 million in space — and his overall legacy with the franchise. 

Evgeni Malkin will forever go down as a Penguins legend 

In exactly 20 NHL seasons to date, Malkin owns 533 goals and 874 assists for 1,407 career points. He's scored at least 30 goals six times and at least 20 15 times. 

Named the Conn Smythe winner as playoff MVP during the Penguins' 2009 title, the first championship run of the Sidney Crosby era, Malkin has been a key contributor on three Stanley Cup winning teams. He's a seven-time All-Star, two-time Art Ross Trophy winner (season points leader) and captured the 2012 Hart Trophy as league MVP.