Evgeni Malkin is back for another year in the Steel City.
The beloved Penguins star signed a one-year, $5.5 million contract on Tuesday, marking his return for his 21st NHL season, and one that will likely be his last.
Malkin will turn 40 later this summer and has spent his entire NHL career in a Penguins jersey.
In a video posted by the team, Malkin expressed his excitement to remain in Pittsburgh for another year, calling Tuesday the “best day of my life!”
“Best city. Best fans. I stay one more year,” he said earlier in the video.
The new deal includes a possibility for Malkin to earn $3.5 million in performance bonuses, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, and also includes a no-movement clause.
The Penguins can seek a three-team approved trade list from Malkin for possible trades Feb. 1 and beyond, the outlet also reported.
“Over the last several weeks, myself and Dan Muse have had very open discussions with Evgeni and his camp about him returning for the 2026-27 season, how his role will evolve and what all of our expectations are at this stage of Evgeni’s career and the current stage in the evolution of the Penguins,” president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas said in a statement. “The result of that process is Evgeni returning to the Penguins for his 21st season with the club.”
Malkin never wanted to leave Pittsburgh, though the team remained noncommittal publicly about the idea of keeping him for another season until recently.
The Russian star told reporters after the Penguins lost to the Flyers in Game 6 of the opening round of the playoffs that he understood if the Pens wanted to change course.
“It’s not easy for Kyle, maybe he wants new blood here,” Malkin said, per the Associated Press. “I understand business. I understand he wants maybe new team, see new faces here.”
Malkin has certainly had a Hall of Fame career with the Penguins, winning three Stanley Cups with the franchise in 2009, 2016 and 2017.
He sits second in all-time games played with 1,269 games, third in goals with 533 and second in game-winning goals with 89.
Only Sidney Crosby has played more seasons with the Penguins.
Malkin was drafted second overall in the 2004 NHL Draft behind Capitals star Alex Ovechkin and made his NHL debut on Oct. 18, 2006.
