Evgeni Malkin: Latest News, Rumors, Speculation on Penguins Star's Future

Pittsburgh Penguins center Evgeni Malkin could reportedly find himself on the trade block this offseason amid rumors about a lack of happiness with the only NHL franchise he's ever played for.

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Available After Team Sale?

Friday, June 5

Josh Gold-Smith of The Score passed along comments that Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman made during an appearance on Sportsnet 960 Radio on Friday. The NHL insider admitted there's a lot of uncertainty surrounding the situation at this stage:

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They're not trading [Sidney] Crosby, but I will tell you this. There have been rumors about Malkin's happiness. About whether or not he wants to stay, and I think ([David] Morehouse's comments were) directed exactly at them.

I have no idea if the Penguins are going to trade Malkin. I would suspect no until a sale gets done. But I can tell you this—there are people around the league who have been saying they've been hearing rumors that Malkin is not happy and would welcome a change of scenery.

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The report comes just a few days after Dave Molinari of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported the Penguins' ownership group was exploring a sale of the franchise.

For what it's worth, Josh Yohe of DK on Pittsburgh Sports states the Penguins brass are unaware of any issues with the center:

Malkin's agent JP Barry also refuted the report, per Molinari, "I don't know where this is coming from. Not from me or Geno. I'm trying to ignore it."

Malkin is coming off another strong offensive season for Pittsburgh, which drafted him with the second overall pick in the 2004 draft. He scored 70 points, including 28 goals, in 69 games. It brought his career total to 702 points in 587 regular-season contests.

As Friedman mentioned, any move involving the 28-year-old superstar likely wouldn't come until after the team's status is settled. He's a highly valuable asset, and moving him now could make the process even more complicated.

That said, the report should still be taken with a grain of salt because it's based mostly on his apparent unhappiness. If that's truly the case, the Penguins would still require a monster offer to even consider moving one of the league's top offensive weapons during his prime seasons.

The odds probably still sit heavily in favor of him returning to Pittsburgh next season. It's a situation that warrants monitoring over the summer, though.