Evgeni Malkin leads Pittsburgh Penguins to win over Detroit Red Wings in Preseason opener -NHL Update
Pittsburgh Penguins were up against the Western Conference giants, Detroit Red Wings, in their preseason opener, but with their star player, Evgeni Malkin, back on the line-up, the Pens did not have difficulty putting the opposition down by beating them,
3-2, on Wednesday, September 21.
Malkin, a former second overall draft during round-one of the 2004 National Hockey League (NHL) Entry Draft, went out last season after he tore his ACL and remained inactive after February 5 along with missing the postseason, which could have been much different
for Pittsburgh had he been there.
Chris Kunitz opened up the scoring by firing in the first goal of the matchup a little over mid-way through the first, assisted by Malkin. Detroit grabbed a goal of their own and tied-up the match nearly two minutes later as Niklas Kronwall shot the puck
through Marc-Andre Fleury.
Seeing Malkin back on the ice, it was hard not to notice how capable of a player he really is.
"He was at a dominant level", Penguins coach, Dan Bylsma, said of Malkin. "His skating looked good. He was strong, powerful on the puck. To get fans out of their seats in an exhibition game three or four times playing the right way, driving to the net, good
with the puck, hunting the puck, it was a pretty good first game back from injury".
Evgeni Malkin took back the lead for Pittsburgh by scoring at the 10:58 mark, followed Matt Niskanen, who extended the lead 3-1 during a power play when Detroits Cory Emmerton went out for a two-minute minor.
For Malkin, just being back on the ice was more than a blessing which he truly enjoyed.
"It's just an exhibition game, but it's a pretty good feeling", Malkin said. "We played pretty good. It was a good test. I liked how we played".
Detroit attempted at making a comeback during the final period as Jiri Hudler made his first of the preseason 2:48 into the last. Red Wings missed three penalties which in the end cost them the first matchup.
Pittsburgh Penguins fans are certainly thrilled to have Malkin back on the ice, but now all that they await is the arrival of their star captain, Sidney Crosby, who has no set date for a return.
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