"He looked pretty good to me," veteran Brian Boyle said with a laugh. "It was nice to see him out. I hadn't gotten a chance to be out there with him yet, so that was fun just kind of watching him and seeing what he can do, especially while he's still rehabbing."
The 35-year-old center wore a white no-contact jersey during Pittsburgh's morning skate - which had full attendance after a day off on Sunday - ahead of their matchup with the Flames. It is the first game of a four-game road swing through western Canada and Seattle.
"Geno is at the next stage of his rehab process where our medical team thinks he's ready to get more players around him and participate in a non-contact fashion, so that was the motivation to bring him on this trip," head coach Mike Sullivan said. "We're excited about that step. That's certainly real encouraging."
General manager Ron Hextall had said at the start of training camp that Malkin would not play for at least the first two months of the season, which began on Oct. 12 in Tampa Bay. Sullivan said they have a rough timeframe for Malkin's return, and this was a significant step as he progresses towards that. The final hurdle to clear will be practicing in a full capacity.
"But certainly, the fact that he's joining the team, that he's around other players, that he's participating in a controlled environment circumstance, is a big step for him," Sullivan said. "We're really encouraged with the progress that he's making. I think the fact that he's on this trip just suggests that he's that much closer."
Malkin was first injured on March 16 against Boston when he collided with Bruins defenseman Jarrod Tinordi. He was sidelined for the final six weeks of the regular season, missing 23 consecutive contests, as well as Games 1 and 2 of Round One of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
It's been quite a long and arduous journey for Malkin, so his teammates were thrilled that he was finally cleared to rejoin them.
"We knew he made the trip, and watching him skate on his own, we knew he was kind of close, he was moving pretty well. We're always happy to see a teammate back in practice after a long recovery like this," defenseman Kris Letang said. "We know how it feels sometimes to be left alone at home and not making the trips. So it's cool to have him with us, and I'm pretty sure he was happy to be around a lot of guys."
