The Pittsburgh Penguins honored Evgeni Malkin for his 1,000th game and he made sure to make it an extra special night.
PITTSBURGH - The shootout may not be the most popular part of an NHL hockey game, but it helped write the perfect script for the Pittsburgh Penguins.
60 minutes plus an overtime wasn’t enough to decide a winner between the Penguins and Calgary Flames as they went to a shootout knotted at one goal a piece.
Backtracking to pregame, however, the Penguins honored Evgeni Malkin to celebrate his recent milestone of 1,000 games played in the NHL.
Video messages from his family, friends, and teammates helped make the ceremony emotional, but it was how Malkin capped off the game that pushed everything over the edge.
The Penguins and Flames entered the shootout and a winner still wasn’t decided after three shooters each.
Tristan Jarry made a save on the Flame's fourth shooter, giving the Penguins the opportunity to close out the game with a goal.
Head coach Mike Sullivan sent Malkin over the boards who, of course, potted the game-winner.
Following the game, Sullivan said it was a heat-of-the-moment decision in choosing Malkin for that spot.
“We have the numbers on our guys,” Sullivan said. “But sometimes, it’s a gut feeling for a coach. I thought Geno had a real strong game. Certainly, I felt like tonight he had a real good chance to score.”
Heading into the 2022-23 season, Malkin was 20 for 52 in the shootout with no attempts last season.
Malkin has made sure to own the spotlight in his last two games; scoring a goal in his 1,000th game followed by and making his ceremony night extra special.
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