BOSTON -- Mark Recchi still remembers his first NHL shift.

In his first exhibition game.

And well he should, because two future Hall of Famers -- Guy Lafleur and Marcel Dionne, then of the New York Rangers --were on the ice opposite him.

And surely neither had no idea that the Penguins rookie facing them would be a pretty safe bet to join them there someday.

But the only thing separating Recchi, the Boston winger whose career has included three stints with the Penguins, from induction to the Hall figures to be the mandatory three-year waiting period after he retires. If he retires, of course.

Recchi, 42, entered the game Thursday night against the Penguins at the TD Garden with 560 career goals, tying him with Lafleur for 22nd place on the league's all-time list.

He also was 13th in points (1,479), ninth in games-played (1,559) and 17th in assists (919).

Not bad for a fourth-round draft choice who was not supposed to be big enough to cut it in the NHL.

"I thought that if I could get 10 years in [the league], that would have been unbelievable," Recchi said. "Twenty-one years later, I'm still enjoying it. It's been great."

Recchi has not missed a game this season and had 15 goals and 22 assists before facing the Penguins.

That kind of productivity is part of the reason he has not ruled out playing another season.

"Health-wise, I feel great," he said. "For playing as much as I have, I still feel good. I still have energy.

"I love it and I'm having fun, and what else am I going to do? I'll think about it at the end of the year."

Penguins center Evgeni Malkin missed his second game in a row because of a bruised right foot.

He has not, however, ruled out returning for a game against Carolina Saturday at Mellon Arena.

"I hope," he said. "I feel better and better, but it's still sore."

Malkin was struck just below his ankle bone, on the inside of his foot, by a shot Sunday from teammate Kris Letang in Tampa. He went on the ice briefly during an optional game-day skate at the Garden Wednesday, but quickly adjourned to the locker room.

Penguins CEO Ken Sawyer will retire Aug. 31, and David Morehouse, the team's president, will add CEO duties to his current ones.

Sawyer joined the Penguins as executive vice president when co-owners Mario Lemieux and Ron Burkle got the team out of bankruptcy in 1999 and was named president in 2003. He has been CEO since 2006 and has overseen construction of the Consol Energy Center.

Before joining the Penguins, Sawyer had been chief financial officer of the NHL for 14 years.

Before the game, the Bruins honored their 1970 Stanley Cup-winning team.

The headliner, of course, was the incomparable Bobby Orr -- regarded by many as the greatest player in the history of the game -- but he hardly was the only big-name talent in the group.

Other prominent members of that team included Phil Esposito, John Bucyk, Derek Sanderson, Gerry Cheevers and Wayne Cashman.

And a backup goalie named Ed Johnston who, after his playing days, went on to become coach, then general manager of the Penguins.

Penguins Plus, a blog by Dave Molinari and Shelly Anderson, is featured exclusively on PG+, a members-only web site from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Our introduction to PG+ gives you all the details.