This article is part of our The Daily Puck series.
Around the Rink
Since Evgeni Malkin went down with a regular season-ending knee injury March 11, the Penguins have posted a league-best 10-1-0 record, propelling the team to second place in the Eastern Conference. Sure, players like Phil Kessel, Kris Letang, and Carl Hagelin have been red-hot in this stretch, but this isn't the first time that the Penguins have looked better off with one of Malkin or Sidney Crosby out of the lineup.
When Malkin won his second Art Ross Trophy and the Ted Lindsay Award in the 2011-12 season (50 goals, 59 assists for 109 points), Crosby was limited to just 22 games while dealing with injury (he still scored a ridiculous 37 points in the games he played, though). With Crosby out of the lineup, Malkin was allowed more freedom to take the reins of the team with his free-wheeling style, resulting in his 50-goal tally.
Both Malkin and Crosby are generational players who are at their best when they are the focal point of their respective teams. Each of them are at the best with the puck on their stick, where they are able to survey the ice and utilize their elite playmaking abilities. While they don't usually skate together, one of them is always the sole focal point of the team, and this is Crosby when he's healthy.
For the next six seasons, Crosby ($8.7 million) and Malkin ($9.5 million) will carry a collective cap hit of $18.2 million. The current NHL salary cap is $71.4 million, and while this number is projected to rise in the future, two players occupying over 25% of space is a high number, especially when they fill nearly identical roles on the team. Both players are nearing 30 years of age, and it may be time for the Penguins to seriously evaluate the possibility of dealing one of the two. Crosby was the savior of the franchise, so the odds he's the one who is traded is close to zero, leaving Malkin as the man who would be dealt.
Whether or not it would happen is one thing, but a trade for Malkin would have to involve a top young player and a lottery pick in the draft (think Johnny Gaudreau or Sean Monahan and their first-round pick in this year's draft), just to get the conversation started. It would be a daunting task for a team to put together a package with near-equal value to Malkin, but this kind of deal would be maximizing Pittsburgh's assets.
Projected Goalie Starters (all times Eastern)
Bruins (Tuukka Rask) vs. Blackhawks (Scott Darling), 12:30 PM
Flyers (Steve Mason) vs. Penguins (Matt Murray), 5:00 PM
Wild (Devan Dubnyk) vs. Jets (Ondrej Pavelec), 7:00 PM
Blues (Jake Allen) vs. Avalanche (Semyon Varlamov), 8:00 PM
Stars (Kari Lehtonen) vs. Ducks (John Gibson), 9:00 PM
For updates later in the day, check our Projected Goalies Grid.
Injury News for Teams Playing Sunday
Boston Bruins
Brett Connolly, RW (knee) – didn't travel with the team to Chicago
Chris Kelly, LW (leg) – continues to practice
Kevan Miller, D (lower body) – doubtful for Sunday's tilt
Dennis Seidenberg, D (undisclosed) – out Sunday
Chicago Blackhawks
Corey Crawford, G (upper body) – returned to practice this weekend
Marian Hossa, RW (illness) – probable Sunday
Andrew Shaw, RW (upper body) – will not play Sunday
Philadelphia Flyers
Michael Del Zotto, D (wrist) – out for the remainder of remainder of the regular season
Michal Neuvirth, G (knee) – could return in the postseason
Pittsburgh Penguins
Marc-Andre Fleury, G (concussion) – sidelined indefinitely
Kris Letang, D (wrist) – should be ready to play Sunday
Olli Maatta, D (lower body) – remains week-to-week
Evgeni Malkin, C (upper body) – shut down for the remainder of the regular season
Kevin Porter, C (ankle) – out for the season
Bryan Rust, RW (lower body) – remains a ways away from playing
Scott Wilson, LW (lower body) – out indefinitely
Minnesota Wild
Ryan Carter, LW (shoulder) – could return Sunday
Jared Spurgeon, D (undisclosed) – status for Sunday is in the air
Winnipeg Jets
Toby Enstrom, D (knee) – out indefinitely
J.C. Lipon, RW (upper body) – status unclear for Sunday
Bryan Little, C (back) – unlikely to return this season
Tyler Myers, D (hip) – out for the season
Anthony Peluso, RW (shoulder) – also out for the season
Mathieu Perreault, C (concussion) – out indefinitely
St. Louis Blues
Jay Bouwmeester, D (upper body) – no timetable for his return
Robby Fabbri, C (ankle) – projected to miss the next 2-to-3 contests
Carl Gunnarsson, D (upper body) – questionable Sunday
Steve Ott, C (hamstring) – has outside chance of playing Sunday
Colorado Avalanche
Nathan MacKinnon, C (knee) – questionable Sunday
Brad Stuart, D (back) – unlikely to suit up again this season
Nikita Zadorov, D (concussion) – ruled out of Sunday's game
Dallas Stars
Jason Demers, D (shoulder) – began skating Tuesday
Mattias Janmark, C (upper body) – ruled out for the coming days
Brett Ritchie, RW (lower body) – out Sunday
Kris Russell, D (lower body) – also out Sunday
Tyler Seguin, C (Achilles) – should return for the start of the postseason
Anaheim Ducks
Frederik Andersen, G (concussion) – doubtful Sunday
Kevin Bieksa, D (upper body) – resumed skating Friday
Simon Despres, D (undisclosed) – also skated on his own Friday
Hampus Lindholm, D (illness) – probable Sunday
David Perron, RW (shoulder) – has been ruled out for the next 3-to-5 weeks
Brandon Pirri, C (upper body) – will not play Sunday
Rickard Rakell, C (appendicitis) – out Sunday
Hot
Jamie Benn, LW, DAL – Last season's Art Ross Trophy-winner has been stellar all year, but a recent surge has elevated him to second in the league in both points (88) and goals (41). Benn's unlikely to catch Patrick Kane for the league's point lead (96) or Alex Ovechkin for the league's goal lead (45) with three games left in the season, but he is likely to remain in the positions he occupies currently. In his last 13 contests, Benn has 17 points and nine goals, as well as totaling six goals in his last four games.
Phil Kessel, RW, PIT – After it looked like Kessel's debut season in Pittsburgh was going to be a major disappointment, the player has stepped his game up down the stretch. Never has this been more evident than in the former Minnesota Golden Gopher's last five games, when he's tallied five goals and five assists. When asked what the difference has been in his game, Kessel said he's just been doing the same things, but the reason is fairly evident. Kessel has been peppering the net with shots of late, averaging close to five on goal per game over his last five-game span. When a player has a shot like Kessel's and uses it consistently, goals will come in bunches, as well as passing lanes as opposing defenders will be looking to close down on his space to shoot.
Cold
Dale Weise, RW, CHI – The deadline day acquisition has been a massive disappointment in Chicago. After scoring 14 goals and 26 points in 56 games with Montreal, Weise has just a single assist in 11 games with the Hawks. The most discouraging part of Weise's time in Chicago hasn't been his struggles to get on the scoresheet, but the fact that he has fit so poorly into the lineup that he's been a healthy scratch on two separate occasions.
Recommended Pickup
Jamie McGinn, LW, ANA – Playing on a middling Buffalo squad, McGinn was scoring at an 18-goal pace (14 in 63 games), but his game has been rejuvenated since coming to Anaheim prior to the trade deadline. McGinn has scored eight goals and 12 points in the 16 games since the deal, earning himself to a promotion to the Ducks' top-line alongside Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry. With his big frame, willingness to get to the dirty areas of the ice, and good hands around the net, McGinn should continue to fill the net playing with perennial stars like Getzlaf and Perry.
