Peter Diana, Post-Gazette The Thrashers' Marion Hossa collides with Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury in the second period. Click photo for larger image.

Much of the hockey world was watching closely last month when Russian officials went to U.S. District Court in Manhattan seeking a temporary injunction to prevent center Evgeni Malkin from playing for the Penguins.

Their request was denied by Judge Loretta A. Preska. And she did it rather emphatically, which might be why almost no one noticed when the appeal period for her ruling expired last week, with no such appeal having been filed.

That, according to NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly, makes it fairly certain that any future legal efforts by the Russians will be aimed at securing financial compensation for Malkin's services, not at having him removed from the Penguins' lineup.

"It's apparent at this point that to the extent this case continues, it will likely be limited to an action for monetary damages as opposed to one seeking to stop Mr. Malkin from continuing to play in the NHL," he said yesterday via e-mail.

"We remain confident that the District Court judge's preliminary findings on the merits -- i.e., that neither the Penguins nor the NHL did anything wrong here -- will be sustained, if tested at trial.

"It would be a far more productive use of the parties' time and money to focus on a universal player transfer framework going forward than it would be to proceed to trial on this matter. Time will tell whether that will be the path chosen."

Eaton makes progress

Defenseman Mark Eaton, who has not played since having his left wrist dislocated Nov. 4 at San Jose, got back on skates for the first time yesterday.

While that was a significant milestone in his recovery, Eaton is not expected to get medical clearance to resume playing until February, even though he said he would like to do so by mid- to late-January.

Eaton, who had the cast removed from his surgically repaired wrist last week, said his first time back on skates went pretty much the way he anticipated it would.

"Anytime you're off [the ice] that long and get back on, you know you're not going to feel great," he said. "It'll take a couple of weeks to start feeling good again."

A cutting edge

Jarkko Ruutu, the feisty Penguins winger, had a couple of fresh stitches above his left eye last night, but not because of a run-in with any of the Thrashers. He was inadvertently clipped by the stick of teammate Erik Christensen at the game-day skate yesterday.

"We were playing one-on-one, and I got my stick up," said Christensen, who failed miserably in a half-hearted attempt to stifle a smile. "That was it. I couldn't believe it. It was leaking right away. It looked like maybe he had a cut there before, and it was just opened up again. [Ruutu should] put on a visor, maybe."

Ruutu is unlikely to take that advice, but he was not particularly taking exception to being cut, either.

"It's an accident," he said. "There's nothing you can do. It's part of the game."

Not satisfied

The outcome of the Penguins' 3-0 loss at New Jersey Tuesday wasn't certain until the waning minutes of regulation -- the Devils scored twice in the final four-plus minutes of the third period -- but keeping the score close wasn't enough to impress coach Michel Therrien.

"We need to upgrade our work ethic," Therrien said yesterday. "I'll support those guys. When their work ethic is there, there's nothing I can say. ... We're not the type of team that can afford to just show up and hope a good thing will happen to us.

"We're a team that needs to work really, really hard to give us a chance to win. We've done that most of the time this year, but [Tuesday] -- even if the Devils played a well-structured, defensive game and even if we were right there in the last five minutes -- as far as I'm concerned, it's not good enough.

"We didn't provoke, we didn't compete hard enough to create some offensive chances. That's why I'm not impressed with our performance [in New Jersey]."

Therrien rejected a suggestion that the Penguins' four-day layoff might have affected their play -- "Excuses are for losers" -- and made it clear his displeasure did not extend to goalie Marc-Andre Fleury, who started again when the Penguins faced Atlanta at Mellon Arena last night.

"He was sharp, and I liked the way he was challenging the shooters," Therrien said. "He was square to the shot, and that's what we ask."

Slap shots

The Penguins awarded $1,000 scholarships to three graduates of city high schools: Donald Swarmer of Oliver, Jessica Lascola of Langley and Steven Rickman of Perry Traditional Academy. ... Thrashers coach Bob Hartley, on Penguins center Sidney Crosby: "Rarely do you see a kid be so dominant offensively, but, at the same time, he doesn't have a bad defensive game. He's always one of the first guys back in his zone, he'll finish his checks. All the details of the game, he applies himself to do [them] the right way. In the real [near] future, he's going to be the best player in this league."