Kyle Dubas says Pittsburgh Penguins 'would love' to have Evgeni Malkin back: 'That's as clear as I can be'

Kyle Dubas says Pittsburgh Penguins 'would love' to have Evgeni Malkin back: 'That's as clear as I can be'

Briefly

"“I had a great exit interview with Evgeny directly,” Dubas said. “And then subsequently have had continued discussions with his representative, J.P. Barry. The season that he's had, where we're at, where we're going, I don't look at our younger players and think they did enough to have it viewed like he's blocking anybody out in that regard. So we would love to have him back. We just continue to work with J.P. on it. So I think that's as clear as I can be.”"

"“I think he's a special player,” Dubas said Tuesday. “Most people in this room have seen it far longer than me firsthand over 82 games. To me, I thought the key thing this year for him was he started off the year excellent. He had a newfound energy. He got hurt in December, and he came back from that in a great spot. And then, unfortunately, I mean, the suspension, you know, we don't have to delve into that. But, you know, he's suspended, and then when he was back from the suspension, came back again with the renewed energy.”"

"The 2025-26 season was Malkin's final campaign in a four-year, $24.4 million contract ($6.1 million AAV) that he signed on July 12, 2022. Malkin is set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1. Heading into the campaign, the Penguins were hesitant to extend the soon-to-be 40-year-old forward, but Malkin excelled in a move to the wing, posting 61 points (19g, 42a) in 56 games. The campaign marked Malkin's first point-per-game season since 2022-23."