On the Penguins' locker room cleanout day, Jim Rutherford vowed that, "Obviously, there will be changes in our team.”
Evgeni Malkin's name has been thrown out as a potential trade chip, as nonsensical as that is. Malkin addressed the trade talks in a Russian interview with RSport.ru's Simon Galkevich ahead of the upcoming World Championship in Slovakia.
"I'm used to the talks I'll get traded, so it doesn't get me nervous," said Malkin, translated from Russian. "Now I'm with the national team, and I'll try to prove I'm good. I had a bad season and I'm going to get out of the hole. Sometimes, criticism is justified. This time, it's probably justified."
Malkin has a full no-movement clause in his contract, which has three years remaining, so he isn't going anywhere unless he wants to.
In a one-on-one interview Tuesday with Dejan, Rutherford expressed confidence in Malkin's ability to get himself out of that hole, if Malkin adapts his game and begins playing more responsibly.
“Geno’s a terrific player,” said Rutherford. “Some players only can do one thing and can’t adjust as they get older. He can. He’s very capable of playing a more responsible style. And if he does, I think he’ll find that his points will come even more easily because he and our whole team will have the puck more. He’s definitely got what it takes to do that and continue to be a great player in this league for a lot of years.”