- Evgeni Malkin turns 40 today, with a 21st NHL season already lined up
- He scored 61 points in 56 games last year, better than a point per game
- Read below for Malkin’s career numbers and the terms of his new Penguins contract
Evgeni Malkin turns 40 today, and he just finished a season scoring at better than a point per game.
The Penguins center put up 61 points in 56 games last year, 19 goals and 42 assists, a clip of 1.09 a night. That was the 16th point-per-game season of his career, and only four players in league history have stacked up that many, according to the Penguins.
He played 56 of 82 games, so the raw totals do not jump off the page. The rate does.
We marked the day with a graphic of Geno in the gold sweater, and the question attached to it is whether a 40-year-old can do it again:
Pittsburgh went with a wine reference:
Kyle Dubas locked in the 21st season back in May, a one-year extension at a $5.5 million cap hit. It landed in the middle of a quiet offseason that still leans on Crosby and Malkin to carry the offense.
Only Sidney Crosby has worn a Pittsburgh sweater for more seasons.
Malkin sits third in franchise history in goals (533), assists (874) and points (1,407) over 1,269 games. He has a Calder, a Hart, two Art Ross Trophies, a Conn Smythe and three Stanley Cup rings on the shelf.
Take a look at the birthday reel the Penguins cut for him:
Seventeen more goals gets Malkin to 550. Another 31 games moves him past 1,300 in a Penguins uniform. Neither number is out of reach in a healthy season.
