NHL All-Star Game: More glitter on Malkin's horizon
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Evgeni Malkin, #71, had a goal and an assist for Team Chara in the NHL All-Star Game at Scotiabank Place Sunday in Ottawa.
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OTTAWA -- At the 2008 NHL All-Star Game in Atlanta, Evgeni Malkin could not be persuaded to speak to reporters after picking up a couple of assists -- not by local media members he knew, not by Penguins staff members, not even by then-teammate and friend Sergei Gonchar.
What a difference over the weekend at the 2012 confluence of star power.
Malkin smiled, held court with media members, had fun with his temporary set of teammates. All without hesitation, without coaxing, without a Russian translator.
"I feel awesome," he said a few minutes after the game at Scotiabank Place. He had a goal and an assist Sunday to help Team Zdeno Chara beat Team Daniel Alfredsson, 12-9.
"I just had fun and enjoyed being here. I think I deserve to be here. Everyone deserves to be here. I just [get to] see my friends, meet a couple new players.
"It's a great show. We scored lots of good goals."
This is just an exhibition, a break for a weekend from the chase for an elevated playoff seed and, for Malkin, perhaps for an NHL scoring title, a league MVP award.
It's back to the real world for the Penguins Tuesday when they play host to Toronto. Malkin will need to slide back into the dominant play that has him leading the league with 58 points in 42 games.
That shouldn't be a difficult transition.
"It's the way he plays, the way he focuses before a game," said Penguins defenseman Kris Letang, who had an assist for Team Alfredsson, as did the Penguins' third representative, winger James Neal.
"His body language is pretty obvious when he's ready to go. He's playing really focused lately. Right now he's the difference against every team. He's the best player in the NHL right now the way he's playing."
Malkin began the season still nursing a right knee that was surgically repaired nearly a year ago. He doesn't seem to be feeling any effects anymore.
"I don't know if I'm 100 percent or what, but I feel pretty good," he said. "You need to save your [strength] for all season, not just 50 games. You need to play evenly all season."
The Penguins have been off since a 3-2 shootout win Tuesday at St. Louis. That put their seven-game winning streak on hold for a long break.
Neal figures the character the Penguins showed in following a six-game losing streak with that seven-game winning streak will carry over.
"The team has come back and really rebounded from that losing streak," he said. "A lot of questions. A lot of doubts. We did a lot of talking with the way we played."
For one day, the three got to play in a different sort of game, one that shows off offense at the expense of tight defense, hitting, shot-blocking and the like.
Malkin got the second goal of the game and for Team Chara at 5:38 of the first period. He took a feed from Calgary's Jarome Iginla, swooped in on goaltender Henrik Lundqvist of the New York Rangers and as he was nearly past the net, lifted the puck in.
"It was just a lucky goal," Malkin said. "Jarome gave me a [drop] pass. It hit my skates. I just stopped and took a shot. I didn't see where I was shooting, just top shelf. Nobody understood how I got the puck in."
For his assist, Malkin victimized Letang by sliding a pass past him to Iginla in the third period.
"We're just playing to enjoy it," Malkin said before tossing a little barb toward his teammate. "Kris played sometimes in the offensive zone, not the defensive zone and that gave me a chance. I said thank you to him."
Letang, hearing of Malkin's comment, smiled and shot back, "I was trying to beat him on his defensive part of the game, which doesn't exist, so we'll see what he says about that."
Letang picked up his assist on a first-period goal by Vanvouver's Henrik Sedin. Neal was the last of the three Penguins to get a point. His assist came in the second period on a goal by Buffalo's Jason Pominville.
"Thank God I got a point. Geno would have been all over me," Neal said.
In a few other game highlights:
• New York Rangers winger Marion Gaborik had a hat trick and an assist -- the only player with four points -- and was named MVP.
• Those who had three points were Iginla, Detroit's Pavel Datsyuk, former Penguins winger Marian Hossa of Chicago, Toronto's Phil Kessel, Alfredsson and Sedin.
• The prettiest goal belonged to Alfredsson, who brought the hometown crowd to its feet when he weaved between defensemen Kimmo Timonen of Philadelphia and Ryan Suter of Nashville -- who weren't exactly putting up a physical protest -- and beat Montreal goaltender Carey Price in the second period.
• Team Chara took a 3-0 lead, but the scored was tied five times. Team Chara scored four of the final goals to wrap it up.
The Penguins did not issue any news regarding injured star Sidney Crosby Sunday, although results of his recent MRI and CAT scans could be released as soon as today.
First Published January 30, 2012 12:00 am
