Evgeni Malkin resumed skating Wednesday in Cranberry, marking the first time since suffering a lower-body injury on March 16, Mike Sullivan said after the Penguins' practice in New York.
Malkin was injured on this hit from Jarred Tinordi in the first period of that game against the Bruins:
"It's huge," Sidney Crosby said of Malkin returning to the ice. "It's a big step. Knowing how important he is to this team, and just the amount of guys that we've seen go out here lately, it's always great when you hear that guys are progressing. It's the same with Geno. It's a big step. We've been battling pretty hard here with guys out of the lineup, and we've got to continue to do that."
John Marino didn't practice on Wednesday, but the update on him was a positive one. Sullivan said that Marino's absence was a result of a maintenance day.
Marino left Tuesday's game in the third period after being tripped by Pavel Buchnevich, with his face appearing to hit the ice:
• Teddy Blueger was again a full-contact participant in practice. He has not been cleared yet to play, but Sullivan said his participation was "encouraging."
• Brandon Tanev is back in Pittsburgh rehabbing off the ice, Sullivan said that his status hasn't changed.
• Kasperi Kapanen still hasn't skated yet and is continuing his off-ice rehab.
