Gino can overtake Mogilny and Fedorov
Evgeni Malkin is a legend among legends. Last night, the Pittsburgh striker scored in a game in Toronto (4-2), and his team won the second straight victory after a seven-game losing streak.
Malkin himself scored the 450th goal of his NHL regular season career. It happened late in the first period, when Gino grabbed a rebound off a long-range shot from a partner and pushed the puck into the net.
If we take only the Russians, then Malkin is fourth in history for goals (450). Only Alexander Mogilny (473), Sergei Fedorov (483) and Alexander Ovechkin (788) are ahead. In principle, Zhenya has everything to reach second place in this list.
In general, in the history of the NHL, only 63 players have conquered the height of “450”. Now Malkin is tied with Peter Stastny and Doug Gilmour (450 each). Up front — Rod Brindamore (452), Théo Fleury (455), Alex Delvecchio (456)…
Another exciting rise for the Russian in the list of perennial NHL marksmen. Also, Malkin is just a dispatcher, a center forward. Here it is more appropriate to count transfers (711), in which Malkin is in 57th place in league history. And it shows once again what a unique guy he is.
The most important thing is that Zhenya scored 15 (6+9) points in 14 games in this championship. He’s second among Pittsburgh scorers, healthy and showing up on offense. Nothing more is needed. Play hockey and step on the accelerator.
Pittsburgh Coach: Malkin was in beast mode
According to eyewitnesses from The Athletic, Malkin played against the Maple Leafs in a big field, he looked angry.
This was partly due to two suspensions he received in the first period, first for dangerous play with a high stick and then for tripping.
“There was no suppression here! Malkin said. And three minutes after the penalty, he scored himself and during the goal celebration made a gesture that, so to speak, depicted this fake bandwagon.
In general, it is curious that Malkin scored 24 goals and gave 42 assists in 41 games against the Maple Leafs. Against Toronto, which has always struggled to play defensively, Gino has always been easy to play.
And at the start of the second period, Malkin burst into the attack on the left flank, made a spinorama and gave a blind pass from behind to Jason Zucker, who was completely alone in front of the gate and with a well-aimed throw brought Pittsburgh ahead, allowing it to take the lead.
“I thought Malkin was in beast mode,” coach Mike Sullivan said of his striker’s incredible goal. “He is the talent of a whole generation.
Malkin: 2025 is too long
But it happened in Toronto, where the World Cup was held in 2016. And there Malkin also played. On Friday afternoon, Gino, along with everyone else, found out that the Ice Hockey World Cup has been postponed from 2024 to 2025. That means Malkin will have nearly a decade between chances to represent his native Russia in total international competition.
“Too long,” said Malkin, choosing his words carefully about the postponement of this World Cup. “Of course, I don’t know why such a final decision was made. But we have to play. It’s a sport, you know? With sport, you can do whatever you want.
The NHL hasn’t officially said if the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine is an obstacle to hosting the World Cup in 2024. But Malkin himself wondered aloud if that was part of the reason the event had been delayed for at least a season.
“If you want the best players, then Russia is one of the best teams,” Malkin said. We have great hockey players. If we play here in the NHL, why can’t we play the World Cup? We play with the same guys: Swedes, Finns, Canadians, Americans. But why can’t we play against each other? I’m surprised we’re not playing. I’m sad.
Pittsburgh captain Sidney Crosby added he didn’t know why the World Cup had been postponed to 2025. But he noted: “It’s a shame we can’t hold it in 2024. I would like to participate. I hope we will play the World Cup again.
Source : MatchTV
I am Sandra Jackson, a journalist and content creator with extensive experience in the news industry. I have been working in the news media for over five years. During this time, I have worked as an author and editor at various outlets producing high-quality content that attracts readers from different demographics.
