Malkin and Talbot Will Return Soon

You can bet that many Pittsburgh Penguins fans were pumping their first in excitement on Thursday night despite seeing their team lose 4-1 against the New Jersey Devils. Pittsburgh who have now dropped four in a row will soon have some bodies back in the lineup as Russian superstar and reigning Art Ross Trophy winner Evgeni Malkin and Maxime Talbot recently were cleared to take part in contact drills. Malkin who scored 14 points in 12 games before being sidelined for a couple of weeks with a shoulder strain has been skating hard and has reported absolutely no problems or setbacks. “It was my second time practicing hard (on Thursday) and it feels great,” Malkin who led the league last year with 113 points said. “I feel stronger now. I feel awesome.” Malkin is targeting a possible return at home against the Boston Bruins on Saturday night.  Meanwhile Malkin’s good friend Maxime Talbot is finally getting close to making his season debut after undergoing offseason shoulder surgery. Talbot who scored 22 points last season and brought a lot of energy to the lineup is obviously excited about being cleared for contact drills but knows that he is at least two weeks away from any game action. “There is not a chance I will come back before another 10 days,” Talbot said. “After that we will say, ‘Maybe tonight,’ but we will take the next 10 days to see how it feels and then after that I will concentrate on maybe playing, I still don’t want to aim for a game.” Currently the Penguins despite being in the mist of their losing streak are still in good shape as they currently occupy fourth in the Eastern Conference with 24 points. You can bet that ugly losing streak will be a thing of the past when the man they call ‘Gino’ inspires his teammates and fans when he hits the ice which will be any game now.