Evgeni Malkin answered beautifully: he scored the puck and gave two assists.
The young Canadian treated Evgeni Malkin boldly: the 23-year-old Ottawa striker pushed the Russian and accused him of simulation. The veteran did not argue, but answered beautifully: he scored a goal and two assists.
However, even three points of the Russian were not enough for Pittsburgh to defeat the outsider.
Malkin’s career in Pittsburgh might have ended
Even last year, St. Louis fans during the season, following almost every match, thanked the club’s management for having managed to resolve all conflicts with Vladimir Tarasenko and keep him in the club. It’s hard to believe, but Malkin found himself in a similar situation. But the Russian forward is a symbol of Pittsburgh along with Sidney Crosby.
This summer, the fans were shocked that the joint history of the “penguins” and Malkin might end. And not in the most pleasant way either. In the off-season, the Russian striker was without a club for a long time and was waiting for an offer from the Pittsburgh management for a new contract. However, the club’s bosses were in no hurry to re-sign the center forward, delaying the moment as best they might. Then there was talk that Malkin was no longer needed by the team because of his age. In addition, he spent only half of last season due to a knee injury. Many experts suspected that Pittsburgh was afraid of a relapse and did not want to keep a player with a huge contract in the roster who might not come on the ice.
The hockey player himself also fueled the interest of the fans: the Russian unsubscribed from the club’s social networks. Then many have already reconciled that the era of Malkin as part of the “penguins” is over. However, soon “Pittsburgh” still offered a contract to his veteran. True, North American journalists rolled out a version that the proposal angered Gino. The striker felt that the club did not respect him, offering him a contract for only two years. But in the end, everything was resolved and following a while Malkin signed a new agreement for 4 years and $ 24.4 million.
Malkin fully justifies the contract offered to him. This season, he has reached a stable point-per-game schedule and periodically gives out solo concerts. So in the match once morest Ottawa, Malkin beautifully responded to the provocation of the Canadian and scored three points.
“I never thought that I would call Malkin soft”
Pittsburgh fans are tired of seeing their team at the bottom of the playoff zone. However, while their pets can do nothing regarding it. Moreover, the “penguins” periodically give out a long series of defeats. So, in early January, they interrupted a six-match streak without victories. However, meetings with clubs such as Ottawa should go smoothly for Pittsburgh.
After all, Malkin’s club is still among the strongest in the league. Therefore, the fans of the “penguins” took the quick puck from their pets for granted. At the same time, it was clear that Pittsburgh did not feel the opponent’s defense. At first, Malkin burst into the zone without resistance, slowly slowed down and gave the transfer to Markus Pettersson. The Swede calmly threw on goal, and Jason Zucker finished off the puck. It seemed that the Penguins would continue to methodically deal with the Canadian club. However, the “senators” managed to quickly turn the meeting around: “Ottawa” took only two minutes to take the lead.
At the same time, both washers were abandoned when Jeff Carter was sitting on the bench for the bad guys: the forward received four penalty minutes. And then a situation occurred that greatly angered Malkin. Gino earned himself a removal: the striker was pushed in the back, and as he fell, he hit his head on the glass. The fall and the push itself did not look scary, but the referee pointed confidently at the penalty box to the Ottawa player. However, Senators forward Parker Kelly did not like this. The Canadian pushed Malkin with his shoulder and said something to the Russian. Kelly considered that there was no removal, and the Russian performed the “fish” – he fell too feignedly.
For a Pittsburgh veteran, that was an insult. For such actions, the 23-year-old player might have received from Gino, knowing his character. However, the Russian striker did not seem to notice the young Canadian. The Ottawa fans also heated up the situation, who also doubted the violation.
“It turns out that Malkin is not a penguin, but a fish,” writes NancyBelowSea.
“I never thought that I would call Malkin soft, but now we have come to this,” comments Uncreativenes11.
Can one of the Ottawa players hit him for real now? , asks lnnkeeper.
But the discussion of the episode on social networks did not end there. The home tribune began booing Gino. The Russian answered with a goal in the majority. After throwing a partner in the special team, Malkin picked up the puck and finished it off at the goal. This goal was his 16th of the season.
In the second period, Pittsburgh even managed to take the lead, but Ottawa did not allow the opponent to play with an advantage for a long time. In the middle of the second 20-minute period, the “senators” hit the “penguins” once more. In the final period, the teams once more scored each other with the puck. At the same time, Malkin once more took part in the goal attack of Pittsburgh. Gino provided the assist. Thus, the forward now has 44 (16+28) points in 44 games.
The meeting went into overtime, where it was the “senators” who turned out to be stronger. Malkin also scored three effective points in this meeting. However, even such productivity was not enough for Pittsburgh to defeat the outsider.