Evgeni Vladimirovich Malkin (born July 31, 1986 in
Magnitogorsk, U.S.S.R.) is a professional ice hockey
player currently playing for the Pittsburgh Penguins
of the National Hockey League.
Malkin was was drafted 2nd overall (behind fellow
Russian Alexander Ovechkin) in the 2004 NHL Entry
Draft by the Pittsburgh Penguins. However, Malkin
remained in Russia for the 2005-06 hockey season
with Metallurg Magnitogorsk after the Russian Hockey
Federation refused to ratify a transfer agreement
between the NHL and the International Ice Hockey
Federation, forcing Malkin to honor his existing
contract with Magnitogorsk. On August 7, 2006, it
appeared that the 20-year-old Russian player had
come to a compromise and signed a deal with
Metallurg Magnitogorsk that would have kept him in
Russia until May 2007. Malkin stated that he signed
the one-year contract not as a compromise but
because of the immense "psychological pressure" his
former club exerted on him. He left Metallurg
Magnitogorsk's training camp in Helsinki Finland
before it had started on August 12th. Metallurg
Magnitogorsk had taken Malkin's passport away; it
was given back to him in order to allow him to pass
the Finnish customs. After arriving with the team at
the airport, Malkin met his agent, J.P. Barry, and
the two quickly left and waited for Malkin's visa
clearance from the US Embassy. On August 15th Malkin
had, by fax, invoked a provision of Russian labor
law that allowed him to cancel his contract by
giving his employer two weeks notice. He appeared in
Los Angeles five days later, on August 17th. Having
freed himself of obligations in Russia, he was able
to sign a contract with the Penguins on September 5,
2006. His contract was identical to the contract
signed by Alexander Ovechkin before the start of the
2006-07 season.
Malkin is a product of the Metallurg Magnitogorsk
hockey school. He had consistently been the top
scorer on the 2006 Russian national ice hockey team.
He made his debut on the U18 squad during the 2003
IIHF World U18 Championships, where he skated on the
top line with Alexander Ovechkin and Gordon Tirpak.
The team went on to claim the bronze medal. He made
his Russian Superleague debut during the 2003-04
season, working his way up from the fourth line.
Malkin has been compared to players such as
legendary Montreal Canadien Jean Beliveau,
Pittsburgh Penguins player Mario Lemieux, and
Toronto Maple Leafs star Mats Sundin. Malkin is a
smooth skater with great shooting and passing
ability and many experts agree that in a draft
without an Ovechkin- or Crosby-like prospect he
would be a first overall pick.
Malkin was named top forward and MVP of the 2006
World Junior Hockey Tournament for the silver
medal-winning Russian team, on which he was the
captain. He earned first star against the American
hockey team in the semi-finals, but team Russia
eventually lost 5-0 to Team Canada in the finals.
Less than two months later, Malkin was given one of
the final spots on the senior Russian hockey team
for the 2006 Winter Olympics, where he helped the
team to a fourth-place finish with 6 points in 7
games, and was named the team's best player, despite
playing on the third line behind the likes of Ilya
Kovalchuk, Pavel Datsyuk, Alexei Kovalev, Ovechkin
and Alexei Yashin. He also played at the IIHF World
Hockey Championships in May, where he led Team
Russia with 9 points. He is one of the very few
hockey players to play in all three major
tournaments in the same year.
His father, Vladimir, was a defenseman for Metallurg
Magnitogorsk, and his brother, Denis, was also in
Metallurg's hockey system. Malkin, according to his
father, used to sleep with his hockey stick in his
bed. The Malkin family is of Russian Jewish lineage.
On September 20, 2006, in his first preseason game
as a Pittsburgh Penguin, Malkin collided with
teammate John LeClair and dislocated his shoulder,
which forced him to miss the start of the season.
Malkin made his NHL debut on October 18, against the
New Jersey Devils, scoring his first NHL goal
against goaltending legend, Martin Brodeur.
On October 19, 2006, Malkin's former Russian hockey
club filed an antitrust lawsuit against the NHL and
the Penguins in the United States District Court for
the Southern District of New York. The motion for an
injunction was denied on November 15, 2006, ensuring
that Malkin would continue play in the NHL that
season. The lawsuit claimed that Malkin should not
be permitted to play in the NHL because he is still
under contract in Russia. The claim also sought
unspecified monetary damages. The lawsuit was
dismissed by the District Court on February 1, 2007.
Malkin set a modern-day NHL record as the first
player to score at least one goal in each of his
first six games. No player had achieved this feat
since the league's inaugural season in 1917-18, when
Joe Malone scored at least 1 goal in 14 consecutive
games to start his Hall of Fame NHL career. Malkin's
streak was eventually stopped at 7 games by the San
Jose Sharks on Saturday, November 4, 2006. On March
8, 2007, Malkin beat Martin Brodeur for his 30th
goal of the season, going on to finish his rookie
year with 33.
On January 3, 2008, Malkin scored three goals
against the Toronto Maple Leafs for his first hat
trick in the NHL. He earned another three-goal
performance on January 14th against the New York
Rangers.
When Malkin arrived in the United States, he spoke
no English. Through the help of fellow Russian and
teammate Sergei Gonchar, he eventually starting to
give short, simple interviews in English.
