Malkin has let numbers do talking on road to 1,100 games for Penguins

CRANBERRY, Pa. -- Evgeni Malkin said he's always felt slightly overlooked.

One of the premier centers of his generation, the 37-year-old has played his NHL career as the second center on the Pittsburgh Penguins behind longtime teammate Sidney Crosby.

He was the No. 2 pick in the 2004 NHL Draft. Alex Ovechkin, possibly the only Russia-born player more statistically accomplished, went No. 1 to the Washington Capitals.

New stars have come. Others have gone. But not much has changed for Malkin, preparing to play his 1,100th NHL game for the Penguins against the Boston Bruins at TD Garden on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; ESPN, SNO, SNE).

Malkin doesn't mind. Actually, it's just the way he likes it.

"I'm not the kind of guy that wants media around me. I like to be quiet a little bit," Malkin said. "I want to just play the game. Probably, people want, like, my private life a little bit more. But I'm, like, a little bit closed.

"Maybe my English is not good before, not talk too much with media. Again, this is kind of myself. I'm OK with that because I know I'm a good player."

Numbers do talk, though.

In his 18th season, Malkin is third in Penguins history with 1,261 points, 485 goals and 776 assists, trailing Mario Lemieux (1,723 points; 690 goals, 1,033 assists) and Crosby (1,540 points; 571 goals, 969 assists).

Malkin scored twice in a 7-0 win against the New York Islanders on Dec. 27, passing Sergei Fedorov (483) for the second-most NHL goals by a Russia-born player behind Ovechkin (830). He's first in assists and second in points, behind Ovechkin's 1,507.

Ovechkin reached out after Malkin eclipsed Fedorov.

"He's a star in the League," Ovechkin said. "I think he's a tremendous player. He knows how to win. He knows how to play. It's not a surprise he has so many points, so many goals and assists."

This season has been less consistent. Malkin is third on Pittsburgh with 32 points (14 goals, 18 assists) but had an eight-game goal drought from Nov. 30-Dec. 16.

"Last, maybe, 10 games, I'm not happy with how I've played," Malkin said Dec. 29. "I want to say I'll still find my game. Try to help the team to win again."

Recent returns have been promising. Malkin has five points (three goals, two assists) in his past four games, helping Pittsburgh (18-14-4) build a six-game point streak (5-0-1) that ended with a 4-3 home loss to Washington on Tuesday.

He won the 2011-12 Hart Trophy voted as NHL most valuable player and the Art Ross Trophy as the scoring leader with 109 points (50 goals, 59 assists). He isn't that same player, but Penguins defenseman Kris Letang said he's not far removed.

"People are talking about Ovi a lot. They talk about (Connor) McDavid. They talk about (Nathan) MacKinnon," Letang said. "You don't hear Geno's name a lot. What he's been able to do in this league for that long and at this age still, being the goal scorer that he is, it's just special.

"I think it's always been (that way), except maybe the year he won the Hart and everything. I think it's always been a little bit like that. He's not seen to his true color."

Without Malkin, Crosby said his NHL career would have been more difficult. That pair, along with Letang, has won the Stanley Cup three times (2009, 2016, 2017). They qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 16 consecutive seasons together before missing them last season.

"There are nights where you don't feel great or have your best," Crosby said. "You're watching Geno do his thing out there. That's happened a lot. I think we've pushed each other over the years, but he's a guy that has always stepped up when he needs to. I think that's just the competitive nature in him.

"I think the consistency is the biggest thing. You don't have that kind of consistency without being as competitive as he is. He's been amazing for a lot of years. The stats show it."

Malkin has averaged 1.15 points per game in the NHL, remaining a point-per-game player late in his career. He had 83 points (27 goals, 56 assists) in 82 games last season after finishing 2021-22 with 42 (20 goals, 22 assists) in 41.

"I think the biggest thing for me that I admire about Geno is how competitive he is," Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. "Just his competitive spirit is off the charts. His will to win, his want to win, and his will and want to score and produce offense. I don't think anyone likes scoring goals more than 'G.' You can see it in his raw emotion when he scores.

"Sometimes, I don't think Geno gets the credit that he deserves in the hockey world for the body of work that he's put together in this league and how talented he is. He's without a doubt one of the greatest players of all-time."

And Malkin wants to continue making that clear.

"I'm still playing at a high level," Malkin said. "I want to play, maybe, the next two, three years, and I want to be not just, like, a normal player. I want to help the team every game."