The Penguins will welcome back a key veteran to their lineup today against Washington. The team announced (Twitter link) that center Evgeni Malkin has been activated off injured reserve. To make room on the roster, winger Emil Bemstrom was sent down to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
Malkin suffered a lower-body injury early in their game on January 25th and hasn’t played since. However, he was a full participant in practice in recent days which made this announcement an expected one.
The 38-year-old got off to a hot start to his season with 24 points in his first 27 games but has seen his production taper off since then with just 10 points in his last 20 outings. Nonetheless, the 19-year-veteran still is a key part of Pittsburgh’s attack, anchoring their second line while averaging over 18 minutes a night once again and ranks fifth on the team in scoring. With the Penguins entering play today six points out of the final Wild Card spot, they’ll need Malkin to get back to his early-season form if they have any hopes of a late push to get back into the playoff picture.
As for Bemstrom, he has only played in two games with Pittsburgh this season on his two recalls, something that probably wasn’t expected after he played a regular role down the stretch last season after being acquired from Columbus. He’s having a strong year in the minors, however, as he has 20 goals and 24 assists in 41 games with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Bemstrom will now return to a prominent role with them while hoping that his scoring prowess down there will earn him another look at some point.