{"id":491284,"date":"2026-05-26T15:18:46","date_gmt":"2026-05-26T19:18:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/?p=491284"},"modified":"2026-05-26T20:34:09","modified_gmt":"2026-05-27T00:34:09","slug":"pens-evgeni-malkin-contract","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2026\/05\/26\/pens-evgeni-malkin-contract\/","title":{"rendered":"Pittsburgh Penguins Announce Evgeni Malkin Contract Details"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Brace yourself fans of the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2026\/04\/29\/nhl-predictions-round-1-game-6-2026-stanley-cup-playoffs-philadelphia-flyers-pittsburgh-penguins\/\" target=\"_self\">Pittsburgh Penguins<\/a>, but big news dropped today. Legendary centre <a  target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/m\/malkiev01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-05-26_hr\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Evgeni Malkin<\/a> contract extension details have been released, as he will return for his 21st NHL campaign. Let\u2019s discuss the details.<\/p>\n<h2>Pens Legend and Centre Evgeni Malkin Contract Extension Announced<\/h2>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"max-width: 1200px\"><smartframe-embed class=\"smartframe_wp_element\" customer-id=\"b0c95bc04383cef69c6b47df872135cf\" image-id=\"WmOBRLch7r5t\" style=\"width: 100%; display: inline-flex; max-width: 4256px; aspect-ratio: 4256\/2832;\" ><\/smartframe-embed><\/p>\n<p>Credit Image: \u00a9 PhotoXpress\/ZUMAPRESS.com<\/p>\n<p>It is a one-year, bonus-laden deal. Moreover, it will carry a salary cap hit of $5.5 million.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Evgeni Malkin is returning to the <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/pens?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#pens<\/a> for a 21st season: He&#39;s signing a one-year, bonus-laden extension<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/reporterchris\/status\/2059337745701408951?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">May 26, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Was there any doubt? After a surprising campaign by the Pens, that saw them defy the naysayers and <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2026\/04\/30\/2026-stanley-cup-playoffs-philadelphia-flyers-knock-out-the-pittsburgh-penguins-in-six-and-avoid-disaster\/\" target=\"_self\">qualify for the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs<\/a>, the good vibes are continuing. General manager Kyle Dubas has been able to convince their veteran Russian to run-it-back, one last time.<\/p>\n<p>With <a  target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/l\/letankr01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-05-26_hr\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Kris Letang<\/a> signed until the summer of 2028 and <a  target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/c\/crosbsi01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-05-26_hr\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Sidney Crosby<\/a> having one year left on his deal, and recently announcing he fully intends to sign another NHL contract, the Big Three will be staying in Pittsburgh for the time being. They have been together since Letang and Malkin\u2019s rookie seasons, way back in 2006-07. Since that time, they have been one of the most legendary trios in all-sport, not just the NHL. They have captured three Stanley Cup Championships together, and Malkin himself is up to 1269 career regular season games under his belt, along with another 183 playoff contests.<\/p>\n<h3>A Look at the Career of Evgeni Malkin<\/h3>\n<p>As we announce the new Evgeni Malkin contract, his role has reduced somewhat, as he had an average of 17:36 of ice time in 2025-26, down from his impressive career mark of 19:28. However, the soon to be 40-year-old, did have his first point-per-game season since 2022-23. In 56 games for the one they call Geno, he managed 19 goals, 42 assists for a total of 61 points. He still plays a significant role on the power play.<\/p>\n<p>Furthermore, thanks to the emergence of centres Thomas Novak and <a  target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/k\/kindebe01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-05-26_hr\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Benjamin Kindel<\/a> on the team, it has sheltered the veteran. This has allowed the rejuvenation that we have seen in his play. In any sense, his veteran presence will be welcomed in the dressing room for one more go around, and try to lead the next generation to ultimate success.<\/p>\n<p>It has been a wonderful career for the Russian, amassing 1407 points so far, and looks like more to come. That is good for 23rd all time, at this point. Also, he is fifth all-time among European-born players. In contrast, there is a group of players just ahead of him. If he can manage 60 points in 2026-27, he would be tied with Stan Makita for 17th on the all-time list. Note that <a  target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/k\/kanepa01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-05-26_hr\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Patrick Kane<\/a> is currently one spot behind Malkin at 1,400 points. So, the list will look a lot different at the end of next year.<\/p>\n<p>Main Photo: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Sidney Crosby is making it clear retirement is NOT something he\u2019s thinking about, despite entering the final year of his contract at 39 years old. <\/p>\n<p>He says he wants to keep playing \u201cfor as many years as possible\u201d \ud83d\udc40\ud83d\udd25 (h\/t <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/JoshYohe_PGH?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@JoshYohe_PGH<\/a>) <a  href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/UatSAoer0g\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/UatSAoer0g<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/GinoHard_\/status\/2057519136419246267?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">May 21, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Brace yourself fans of the Pittsburgh Penguins, but big news dropped today. Legendary centre Evgeni Malkin contract extension details have been released, as he will return for his 21st NHL campaign. Let\u2019s discuss the details. Pens Legend and Centre Evgeni Malkin Contract Extension Announced Credit Image: \u00a9 PhotoXpress\/ZUMAPRESS.com It is a one-year, bonus-laden deal. Moreover, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4222,"featured_media":463253,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[12,4547,34,4548],"tags":[544,259,6022,140],"class_list":["post-491284","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-penguins","category-hockey","category-news","category-nhl","tag-evgeni-malkin","tag-kris-letang","tag-pittsburgh-penguins-news","tag-sidney-crosby"],"modified_by":"Levi Pike, Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/491284","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4222"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=491284"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/491284\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":491304,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/491284\/revisions\/491304"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/463253"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=491284"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=491284"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=491284"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}