http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Penguins center Evgeni Malkin celebrates one of his two goals with teammates during a victory over the Atlanta Thrashers on Tuesday night at Mellon Arena.
Chaz Palla/Tribune-Review
The shelf life of Penguins center Evgeni Malkin's nickname, "Geno," is short. In about three weeks, people can probably start calling him "Art."
"No, no, there are 10 games to go," Malkin said Tuesday after he tied a personal best with five points in the Penguins' 6-2 romp over the Atlanta Thrashers at Mellon Arena.
"(Call me) 'Geno' for a few more weeks. It's not done."
It is the NHL scoring race, and Malkin took five big strides toward the finish line last night. With two goals, his 31st and 32nd, and three assists, he pushed his league-best point total to 102.
Next closest among scorers is teammate and fellow star center Sidney Crosby, who recorded two assists last night. Crosby has scored 92 points — 13 in seven games since missing four straight with a groin injury.
One of the "Mega Powers" could deliver the Penguins their 13th scoring title in 21 seasons. If Malkin is that one, he will join Crosby, Jaromir Jagr (five) and Mario Lemieux (six) in Penguins lore.
Crosby and Jagr (once each) and Lemieux (three) also have won the Hart Trophy as league MVP.
With the resurgent Penguins (38-26-8, 84 points) on a 9-0-2 run that has made a once doubtful third consecutive Stanley Cup playoff berth seem likely, either Malkin or Crosby could claim the Hart.
Crosby, who won it and the scoring title in 2007, agreed last night that his and Malkin's chances are hurt by their standing as teammates.
"Yeah, that's probably true," Crosby said. "When you have guys 1-2 (in the scoring race), it's a bit of an argument there."
That argument is one select members of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association might have if the Penguins hold their current fifth-place standing in the Eastern Conference.
Since interim coach Dan Bylsma replaced Michel Therrien on Feb. 15, the Penguins have gone from 10th and five points from a playoff spot to a six-point lead over ninth-place Florida, which has played two fewer games.
Defenseman Sergei Gonchar scored his sixth goal and recorded three assists last night.
"I can't complain," said Gonchar, who has recorded 14 points in 15 games after missing the Penguins' first 56 contests because of a left-shoulder injury.
The Penguins, who went 3 for 6 on the power play, also received goals from left wing Chris Kunitz, his 22nd, center Jordan Staal, his 20th, and defenseman Mark Eaton, his third — a surprisingly sweet finish to a 2-on-1 lead by Gonchar in the third period.
Gonchar refused to designate either Crosby or Malkin as more valuable.
"They're both outstanding players," Gonchar said. "I don't know how it will play out. I just know we are fortunate to have both playing for us."
The Hart Trophy is awarded to "the player adjudged to be most valuable to his team" as voted on by members of the PHWA.
Washington left wing Alex Ovechkin is considered a favorite to repeat as the winner. He bested Malkin for the scoring title and MVP last season after leading the Capitals to a Southeast Division title in the last week of the regular season.
Ovechkin is third in the NHL with 90 points and leads the league with 49 goals.
Several persons associated with the Penguins said last night they were not sure if the so-called teammate factor would hurt Malkin and/or Crosby in MVP voting.
"It's a good question... I'm going to say, 'No,'" general manager Ray Shero said. "It shouldn't."
"It's hard to say," right wing Petr Sykora said. "People that vote understand hockey and they know how valuable those guys are for us. I don't think it should hurt them but ... you can't really say one of those guys is more valuable than the other.
"It's a hard decision to make."
Not for Crosby or Malkin.
"It's Sid," Malkin said. "He helps me. He makes good passes every game."
"When you look at that award, it's probably an award (for which) they look at specifically at someone that really puts their team over and above," Crosby said. "He does that for us."
Malkin is playing out of his mind right now. I think he's the frontrunner for the Hart trophy, but I read an article that said maybe Sidney Crosby
ReplyDeletewould detract from Malkin's votes? What do you think
It's going to be tough for either of them to beat out Ovechkin...I do believe that Malkin and Crosby will steal some votes from each other. It's tough to go wrong with any of these three...they are all transcendent talents and we're lucky to be able to watch them play.
ReplyDeleteThanks for commenting.