CHICAGO — Evgeni Malkin skated in his 1,000th game Sunday, and the Penguins commemorated it by doing something they had not done since his 223rd.
The Penguins escaped United Center with their first win in Chicago since 2009.
Malkin scored as they jumped out to a three-goal lead over the Blackhawks, and the Penguins held on late to win 5-3, their third straight victory.
Philipp Kurashev from the left corner banked in a shot off of a sleeping Casey DeSmith to stunningly tie up the score at 3-3 with 4:11 left in the third period. But Sidney Crosby answered right back 57 seconds later, following up his own rebound to beat Blackhawks goalie Arvid Soderblom for the winning goal.
Crosby finished with four points to send Malkin and the Penguins home happy.
Malkin got his goal early in the second period. Ryan Poehling, who impressed on this road trip, looped behind the Chicago net and slid a centering pass to Malkin. He whacked it over the right pad of Soderblom, a 23-year-old rookie.
He flashed a wide grin as he pumped his right fist then stretched out his long arms to embrace the other four Penguins skaters, who surrounded him in the corner. Meanwhile, wife Anna and son Nikita cheered in the United Center seats.
Pittsburgh went on to earn a win in Chicago for the first time since Malkin’s third season in the league, making his milestone night even more memorable.
He is just the eighth Russian-born player to ever skate in 1,000 NHL games.
Malkin is the 65th player in league history to play that many games with one team. He and Crosby are the only two Penguins ever to accomplish that feat.
“After 16 years, it’s a long run. But it’s amazing. I can’t believe it. Life, it’s amazing right now. I have the best job in the world,” Malkin, 36, told the Post-Gazette last week. “It’s a great organization. We still have a nice group here. It’s not easy. We have injuries and tough times. But I have so many good memories.”
Three Stanley Cups. Two scoring titles. And a Hart Trophy a decade ago. Only 14 players, four of them being current or former Penguins, have tallied more points through 1,000 career games than Malkin. He had 1,165 entering Sunday.
“We marvel sometimes at what he’s able to accomplish on the ice,” coach Mike Sullivan said. “We’ve seen him at his very best through some of the Stanley Cup runs. He’s been just such a big part of the Penguins’ success. ... He’s such a dominant player when he’s playing well, and I still think he has that game.”
Malkin tallied seven goals and 19 points in his first 18 games of the season.
During pregame warmups, his Penguins teammates gave the superstar center a playful, little tribute. Everyone laid on their backs and swung their legs back and forth in the air, a stretch that has long been a part of Malkin’s routine. That gesture cracked up Geno, who slapped his stick on the ice in appreciation.
Penguins players did something similar before Crosby’s 1,000th game last year. The team has more in store for Wednesday’s game at PPG Paints Arena.
Sullivan then sent out Malkin’s line for the opening faceoff at United Center.
Just 64 seconds into the game, Brock McGinn skated down the left wing and ripped a slapper past Soderblom. McGinn has scored in four of his last six games.
Malkin scored 2:27 into the second period. Less than two minutes later, Rickard Rakell connected on a one-timer to push the lead to 3-0. Crosby set him up.
Right then, it looked as if the Penguins would easily skate away with a rare win in Chicago. Unfortunately, they started playing like it. A pair of breakdowns for the top defense pair of Kris Letang and Marcus Pettersson resulted in the Blackhawks beating Casey DeSmith on point-blank shots, pulling within a goal.
The top power-play unit, which powered them to Thursday’s win in Minnesota, then had a miserable shift as the final seconds ticked down in the period. They flubbed the puck all over the place then let Colin Blackwell skate in alone on DeSmith just before the final buzzer. They were lucky that he couldn’t capitalize.
DeSmith and the penalty kill came through in the third, going 2-on-2 in the period, to help the Penguins wrap up their road trip with a perfect 3-0-0 record.
ICE CHIPS
-- Teddy Blueger and Josh Archibald both had shorthanded breakaways. Neither converted, but the Penguins have now gone four straight games without allowing a power-play goal. Archibald and Poehling had big shot blocks in the third.
-- Crosby had 10 points in three games on this trip. It probably wasn't a coincidence that happened after he was a minus-4 in Tuesday's loss to Toronto.
-- DeSmith got the start with Pittsburgh playing the second half of a back-to-back. Tristan Jarry had a 32-save shutout in Saturday’s 3-0 victory in Winnipeg.
-- Kasperi Kapanen and Chad Ruhwedel were again the team’s healthy scratches. Neither player suited up on this road trip. Kapanen has sat out six of seven.
-- The Blackhawks had a pregame ceremony to retire the number of Marian Hossa, who briefly played for the Penguins in 2008. Hossa went on to win three Stanley Cups with Chicago and made the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2020. Former Penguins coach Eddie Olczyk emceed the ceremony, which lasted 50 minutes.
COMING UP
Their road trip over, the Penguins have Monday off. They are scheduled to practice Tuesday in Cranberry before hosting the Calgary Flames on Wednesday.
