Before the 2025-26 season started, Evgeni Malkin told the Pittsburgh Penguins coaches and management staff that he wanted to play with Tommy Novak.
Novak was acquired by the Penguins from the Nashville Predators, along with Luke Schenn, for Michael Bunting and a fourth-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, before last year’s trade deadline. Novak would go on to appear in only two games before suffering a season-ending injury.
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Coming into the season, Novak started the year playing a lot of minutes with rookie Ben Kindel on the third line, while Malkin centered Anthony Mantha and Justin Brazeau. Novak and Malkin had chemistry on their own lines before the Penguins suffered some injuries, including one to Malkin in early December.
Malkin missed a month with a shoulder injury before returning to the lineup on Jan. 8 against the New Jersey Devils. He was originally on a line with Kindel and Egor Chinakhov before head coach Dan Muse swapped out Kindel for Novak ahead of the Jan. 13 game against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Novak and Malkin have been on the same line ever since that game, and the Penguins have a 5-0-2 record during that time. The two have also shown outstanding chemistry together, and it was on display again during Sunday’s game against the Vancouver Canucks.
In the second period, Chinakhov did a great job winning the puck along the boards before spinning and passing the puck to Novak, who delivered a great cross-ice pass to Malkin in the offensive zone for the game’s opening goal. Malkin made no mistake with the puck on that play.
Novak’s a great distributor of the puck, and when you combine that with Malkin’s ability to finish chances, that’s what you get.
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During the game against the Calgary Flames on Jan. 21, Malkin and Novak both scored great goals, but it was their play on Chinakhov’s goal that really stood out. Malkin took the puck from Ryan Shea and galloped into the offensive zone before passing it off to Novak. Novak then had a small, one-touch feed to Chinakhov, who used his wicked release to make it 2-0 at the time.
Novak has four points in his last three games and two goals and eight points in January, while Malkin has five points in his last three games and five goals and 11 points for the month.
Jan 15, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins right wing Egor Chinakhov (59) celebrates his goal with Pittsburgh Penguins center Evgeni Malkin (71) and center Tommy Novak (18) against the Philadelphia Flyers during the second period at PPG Paints Arena. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
Novak and Malkin have played 173 minutes together at 5v5 this season, and have been on the ice for 48.3% of the shot attempts, 47.7% of the expected goals, 49.7% of the scoring chances, and 47.8% of the high-danger chances. While all of those numbers are below 50%, I expect them to improve down the stretch, given how they’ve been playing. They also have a +8 goal differential at 5v5.
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Malkin is slated to hit free agency after the season, and it’s been a big story this year, given the season that he’s having. Malkin has 13 goals and 40 points in 36 games and is one of the biggest reasons why the Penguins are in second place in the Metropolitan Division.
His representatives are expected to meet with Penguins president and general manager Kyle Dubas during the Olympic break to discuss a possible extension. If I’m the Penguins, this is a no-brainer. I’d sign Malkin to a one-year deal to return for another year. He’d probably take at least a little bit of a discount, and the front office can also attach a full no-move clause to the deal.
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He’s playing like a player who still has something left in the tank and more than deserves an extension. It would also give the Penguins another opportunity for Malkin and Novak to play together for a second season in a row, since Novak still has a year remaining on his contract after this year. Novak isn’t slated to be a free agent until after the 2026-27 season.
Both players have been a blast to watch on the same line this month and are a threat to score each time they’re on the ice. Assuming the Penguins make the playoffs, they could be a matchup nightmare for other teams in a seven-game series.
(Data via Natural Stat Trick).
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