The Pittsburgh Penguins forward hosted Ovechkin and Washington Capitals teammates Evgeny Kuznetsov, Alexander Alexeyev and Aliaksei Protas for dinner at his house the night before their matchup at PPG Paints Arena on Saturday.
Malkin's son, Nikita, also joined the crew at the dinner table.
A
picture of the dinner party was shared
by Malkin's wife, Anna Kasterova, on her Instagram story.
"It's always nice. Lots of fun," Malkin told ESPN's Emily Kaplan after the Penguins' 4-3 win. "Lots of joking around. We've known each other a long time. We are good friends. We spend time together when we can. It's a great dinner. My wife is such a great dinner boss."
Malkin credited the dinner party for the group's success during Saturday's game. Ovechkin scored a goal, Kuznetsov had an assist and Malkin scored the Penguin's game-winning goal.
A new tradition might have just been born.
