The Evgeni Malkin situation might come to a head this week after the center spoke to the media Saturday following the Pittsburgh Penguins’ frustrating 3-2 shootout loss to the New York Rangers. After the initial furor of Malkin expressing frustration, this outlet got the exclusive drop on what comes next. As for the game, it started very well but devolved into a pigpen of mistakes.
Elsewhere in the Daily, the NHL trade deadline is now just five days away, and it seems the market for big-name centers is getting the spotlight. The Toronto Maple Leafs and Edmonton Oilers are jammed up and trying to deal. And Elias Pettersson might be hitting rock bottom in Vancouver.
The trip to and from New York was easier than I thought. I rolled into the homestead around 1 a.m. after a couple of Red Bulls, just to make sure, and an easy drive aided by the Dateline podcast. But I am a little frustrated by my colleagues. The TV cameras and other reporters followed me and another reporter who had a postgame plan and now everyone has the Malkin story. No–go away! (But that’s the world). That part was frustrating, but I hope you read our exclusive update, which followed Malkin saying he was told that his agent and the team would talk AFTER the season.
We’ve got our hooks in this story, and I very much want to be the one to report the conclusion, which might come this week.
Also, New York. Pizza. After eating a wildly disappointing bean burger on Friday because it was a Lenten Friday, I made sure to get some real slices Saturday. I don’t know–for those of you who want to know the best pizza in the city, I’ve done exhaustive work for you. NY Suprema near MSG and Little Italy at 5th & 33rd are really, really good and might be tied atop the leader board. Those slices at Suprema were huge.
Let’s do this.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Pittsburgh Hockey Now: Let’s start with the Malkin exclusive. First, it was the news story with heavy analysis, then we updated it to reflect the quickly changing context after sources quickly responded. The Evgeni Malkin situation.
I think that story got lost in the loud shuffle of the original. So, spread the word that there’s an update to the original reporting that everyone had.
We can skip past the recap. Let’s get straight to the report card. There were a couple of A grades, but there are some concerning “needs improvement” grades in the report card, too. Oh, and another episode of “What the hell is goaltender interference?!” We broke down the good, and we broke down the breakdown in the Penguins grades.
That ALL of the goaltender interference calls have gone against the Penguins is something.
NHL Trade Talk, News, & National Hockey Now
Hockey Night in Canada (Video): Elliotte Friedman’s Headline segment was about the centers on the market, from Vincent Trocheck to Ryan O’Reilly and Nazem Kadri. The Edmonton Oilers are also on the hunt, even as their goaltending is, umm, yeah, you know.
Sportsnet: Whoof. Elias Pettersson earned a big-time eight-year contract, but friction with J.T. Miller resulted in Miller’s trade, resulting in the Canucks fall, coach Rick Tocchet leaving, and now Pettersson at rock bottom after getting benched Saturday.
Edmonton Journal: It seems the Edmonton Oilers need a right-handed blueliner, but still have interest in Oliver Ekman-Larsson, a lefty who can play right. Edmonton has made its goalie move and is now hunting defensemen and centers.
Er, defencemen and centres, sorry.
New Jersey Hockey Now: Finally, some good news for the Devils and Team USA star Jack Hughes. The Devils win! The Devils win!
Daily Face-Off: Conflicting reports–It’s either the Detroit Red Wings, or there are other teams with standing offers for Vancouver defenseman Tyler Myers.
And the New York Islanders gave the Penguins a little help in the playoff race by beating the Columbus Blue Jackets, 4-3 in OT. That means the Penguins keep their seven-point edge with 24 to go. Hockey magic numbers are wonky because of tie breakers and loser points, but for general clarity, that makes the Penguins’ magic number to eliminate the CBJ about 41 points.
Montreal Hockey Now: And the Canadiens gave the Penguins some real help by beating the Washington Capitals in regulation, 6-2. Ole, Ole, Ole. The Canadiens are a team to watch.
The Penguins lead the Capitals by four points with four games in hand. That makes the Penguins’ number to eliminate Washington about 36.
Realistically, the Penguins need 22 more points to get to 95, generally seen as the line of demarcation for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
NEW: Crowd goes absolutely nuts as Team USA female hockey stars Hilary Knight and Megan Keller are brought on stage during Saturday Night Live.
The women were introduced after Team USA men’s stars Jack and Quinn Hughes.
“It was gonna be just us, but we thought we’d invite the… pic.twitter.com/20pFB0iBwZ
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) March 1, 2026
Categorized:Links NHL Trade Rumors
