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The Pittsburgh Penguins have reached an agreement with the forward Yevgeny Malkin of a four-year, $24.4 million contract extension, was announced today by General Manager Ron Hextall.
The deal begins in the 2022-23 season and will run through the 2025-26 season and has an average annual value of $6.1 million.
“Evgeni is a generational talent who will be remembered as one of the greatest players in NHL history,” said Hextall. “His hockey resume and individual accomplishments speak volumes about him as a player, and we’re thrilled he’s continuing his remarkable legacy in Pittsburgh.”
A three-time Stanley Cup champion (2009, ’16, ’17), Malkin has played all 16 of his NHL seasons with the Penguins, where he ranks in the top 5 in team history in nearly every major statistical category, including games played ( 981, 2nd), goals (444, 3rd), assists (702, 3rd), points (1,146, 3rd), power play goals (162, 2nd), game-winning goals (78, T-1st) and Overtime goals (13, 2nd). Only Mario Lemieux (17) and Sydney Crosby (17) have played more seasons in a penguin sweater.
The seven-time NHL All-Star has also won a plethora of individual awards, including two Art Ross Trophies (2009, ’12) for the NHL regular-season leader and a Hart Trophy (2012) for the league’s MVP, a Ted Lindsay Award (2012) for “Most Outstanding Player”, a Calder Trophy (2007) for Rookie of the Year and a Conn Smythe Trophy (2009) for NHL Playoff MVP. He was also voted MVP of the Penguins team five times by his teammates.
Some of Malkin’s most iconic performances came in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The 6-foot-3, 195-pound center was instrumental for the team in the 2009 Stanley Cup championship run, where he was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy after scoring a league-best 36 points (14G- 22A). At 22 years and 10 months, he became the fourth youngest Conn Smythe winner in NHL history. Malkin continued to lead the NHL in playoff scoring during the 2017 postseason, scoring 28 points (10G-18A) in 25 games en route to his third Stanley Cup. Overall, Malkin ranks 14thth in the all-time NHL postseason with 180 points (67G-113A) in 177 playoff games. Only Sidney Crosby (201) has more playoff points in franchise history than Malkin.
Malkin, 35, is one of only 37 players in NHL history to surpass the 100-point record three times or more (2008, ’09, ’12) and is one of only six active players to do so . He also registered a 50-goal season (2012) and averaged a point per game or more in 14 of his 16 seasons. Since joining the league in 2006–07, Malkin has ranked fourth in the NHL for goals (444) and points (1,146) and third for average points per game (1.17).
Malkin, a native of Magnitogorsk, Russia, is one of the most accomplished Russian players in NHL history. He is one of only four Russian-born players of all time (Igor Larionov, Sergei Fedorov, Sergei Brylin) to win three Stanley Cup championships, and his 1.17 points per game average is the highest in league history among his countrymen. Among Russian-born NHL players, only Alex Ovechkin (1,410) and Sergei Fedorov (1,179) have more points than Malkin. He has also represented Russia on the international stage on a number of occasions, including three Winter Olympics (2006, ’10, ’14), eight World Cups (2005, ’06, ’07, ’10, ’12, ’14, ’15). , ’19), three World Junior Championships (2004, ’05, ’06), two World Junior U18 Championships (2003, ’04) and one World Hockey Championship (2016).
Malkin was originally drafted by Pittsburgh in the first round (2nd overall) of the 2004 NHL Draft.
