Geno's back.
Pittsburgh Penguins superstar Evgeni Malkin is playing in Game 2 of his club's first-round series against the New York Rangers, his first action since mid-March, when he suffered an upper-body injury that cost him the final month of the regular season.
Malkin returns about one week ahead of schedule from upper-body injury. Was due to miss 6-8 weeks. Returns in just over five.
— Jonas Siegel (@jonassiegel) April 16, 2016
Malkin played only nine minutes against Columbus on March 11, recording two assists before leaving the game, and the Penguins have been on fire ever since. Pittsburgh beat the Blue Jackets 3-2, and have since won 15 of 17, including Game 1 against New York.
Meanwhile, in goal, Marc-Andre Fleury remains out due to the lingering effects of a concussion, and Jeff Zatkoff made his second consecutive start. The 28-year-old third-string goalie was thrust into the spotlight in Game 1, and he was a star, stopping 35 of 37 shots in his playoff debut. Tristan Jarry will back up Zatkoff.
Evgeni Malkin is IN for #pens along with Bryan Rust. Justin Schultz and Oskar Sundqvist OUT.
— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) April 16, 2016
The Penguins are peaking at the right time, and Malkin's return will make a formidable squad that much better. The dynamic center was having another superb season, finishing with 27 goals and 31 assists in 58 games. He had 27 power-play points, including 11 power-play goals, and six game-winners. While the Penguins - and Sidney Crosby - got off to a slow start, Malkin was consistent throughout.
The Rangers already face an uphill climb. And even though Henrik Lundqvist is good to go after sustaining an eye injury in Game 1, Malkin's return means New York's path to the second round is now that much more difficult.
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Marian Gaborik is on the verge.
The Los Angeles Kings right winger, out since Feb. 12 with a knee injury, has been medically cleared to play and will be a game-time decision Saturday night for Game 2 against the San Jose Sharks, head coach Darryl Sutter said.
"It becomes a coach's decision (and) a player's declaration of whether he's ready or not," Sutter said, according to Kings Insider's Jon Rosen.
It was a supremely disappointing regular season for Gaborik, the 34-year-old scoring 12 goals in 54 games and finishing with only 22 points. However, the Kings have fond memories of Gaborik's 2014 postseason, when he scored 14 goals and added eight assists in 26 games to play an integral role in the club's Stanley Cup win.
Meanwhile, on the blue line, Sutter confirmed that Alec Martinez will not play due to an undisclosed injury, and Jamie McBain will suit up in his place, according to NHL.com's Shawn Roarke.
Martinez played only 11 minutes in Game 1 - none in the third period - and that meant Drew Doughty and Jake Muzzin saw a ton of ice. The two will be relied upon heavily again, regardless of how many minutes McBain can go. Martinez's loss is a big one, as he averaged more than 21 minutes a game during the regular season.
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Joe Colborne is a pending restricted free agent, and if he could have it his way, he'd remain a member of the Calgary Flames for a long time.
"I'd like to spend the next 10-to-12 years here," Colborne said. "I'd love to be part of the group that brings a Stanley Cup back."
The 26-year-old Calgary native was traded to the Flames in 2013 and enjoyed a career-best season this year, scoring 19 goals and 44 points.
"I just think confidence-wise, it was huge," Colborne said. "I thought I came into my strength and my offseason commitments have really started to pay off. My comfort level as a guy who can go to the front of the net, win battles, go to the corners and control the puck has started to come to fruition."
Calgary's front office faces plenty of important decisions this offseason, including new contracts for forwards Sean Monahan and Johnny Gaudreau, plus a chance at a top-five pick in the draft.
Colborne understands general manager Brad Treliving has his own priorities.
"I would like to get it done sooner rather than later, but I understand there are some other guys that will be getting pretty good raises here that are probably the most important thing for them to take care of," Colborne said.
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The Tampa Bay Lightning can see the effects of Justin Abdelkader's handiwork.
The Detroit Red Wings' super agitator left forward Mike Blunden with nine stitches during a brawl - which Tampa Bay head coach Jon Cooper called "mild" - and up 2-0 in the series, the Lightning may think they have some breathing room for retribution.
Cedric Paquette, asked if he expects the Lightning to retaliate, was honest: "Probably," he said, according to Lightning website writer Bryan Burns.
"That's not smart from (Abdelkader)," Paquette added. "When there's a guy laying on the ice like that, you respect your opponent."
Abdelkader disagrees, clearly. With Blunden beneath him in the melee, Abdelkader let his fists fly.
After the game, both teams said what was expected: It's hockey. It's the playoffs. There's a lot of emotion out there.
The bad blood will carry over. Because it's hockey. Because it's the playoffs. But Cooper's not worried about it.
"I hope our compete carries over," he said. "That's all that matters."
Game 3 should be fun to watch.
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Hockey - sports in general - was always thought to be a game of inches. Until video review came along. Now we're dealing with the smallest units of measurement, when the stakes are at their highest.
The talk of the hockey world Saturday was Vladimir Tarasenko's go-ahead goal for the St. Louis Blues on Friday night, which was disallowed after it was ruled Jori Lehtera was offside. The goal would have made it 3-2 St. Louis. Instead, the Chicago Blackhawks rallied for a late goal of their own, which review upheld, and won the 3-2 to tie the series at 1-1.
New blue line cameras were used to determine Lehtera was, in fact, offside. Kay Whitmore, a former NHL goalie and now senior director of hockey operations for the league, said without those cameras, Tarasenko's goal counts.
"The blue line cameras situated right on the blue line gives you a true sight line of what's actually happening," Whitmore said, according to NHL.com's Amalie Benjamin. "Without those cameras, this would have been a tough call to make. You could probably say that the skate might have been in, but if there's any doubt on the ice, then the original call has to stand.
"To be honest, this was one of the closest ones we've had. You're looking at a puck - not just when it enters the zone. You're actually looking at when the skate comes off the ice and if it stays on the ice when the puck enters the zone."
Lehtera offside, Tarasenko goal wiped out #Blues #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/7Zil8B0Zf1
— Marina Molnar (@mkmolnar) April 16, 2016
Whitemore's next comments were the most telling. These calls - as close as it gets, unable to determine unless looking at slow-motion replay - were not why replay was instituted.
"I think the initial purpose of an offside challenge was to rid the game of egregious calls where a player is a foot or two offside, but you can't just do those ones," he said. "If it's offside, it's offside, and this one was millimeters offside.
"You just have to have as much technology as possible once you institute a rule like this. I think, like I said, there will be a debate probably for a long time (from) hockey purists about whether the intent of this rule was to take down goals like this, but maybe that's a discussion for another day.
"Did that skate in the air, does it have a real effect on what happened after that? You can argue that all day, but the rule is, it's always been, you have to have your skate on the ice crossing the blue line. Until there's a rule change, this is the way it's going to have to be."
It's hard enough to win the Stanley Cup. These questionable video reviews in what is one of the fastest games on the planet make it that much harder.
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The King is in.
New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist will start Game 2 on Saturday afternoon against the Pittsburgh Penguins, head coach Alain Vigneault announced.
Lundqvist was forced from Game 1 after the first period, after he took a high stick and suffered an eye injury.
"He's good to go," said Vigneault.
This will be Henrik Lundqvist's 112th straight playoff start for #NYR, dating back to 2006.
— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) April 16, 2016
Lundqvist stopped 10 of 11 shots in the first period in Game 1, allowing a goal shortly after the incident, in which his defender's stick came through his mask and got him in the eye. He was replaced by Antti Raanta, who stopped 16 of 19 shots as the Rangers dropped the series opener 5-2.
While Vigneault was forthcoming about his starter, Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan continues to play mind games, saying both Evgeni Malkin and Marc-Andre Fleury are game-time decisions.
"You will soon find out," Sullivan apparently said with a smile on his face during his media availability.
Fleury practiced ahead of Wednesday's Game 1, though eventual starter Jeff Zatkoff knew he was starting as of Tuesday night. It's that time of year, where teams try to gain any advantage they can.
Malkin, meanwhile, is reportedly no longer listed on injured reserve on the Penguins' website, so indications are he's going to be in the lineup.
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Tampa Bay Lightning forward J.T. Brown is out indefinitely after suffering an upper-body injury in Game 2 against the Detroit Red Wings, the team announced Saturday.
Brown exited Friday's game in the first period after blocking a shot, and didn't return.
The 25-year-old was playing on Tampa Bay's third line with Cedric Paquette and Ryan Callahan, and there's been no update on the specific nature of the injury, or who could replace him in the lineup.
Brown scored 22 points in 78 games this season.
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