Penguins activate Evgeni Malkin off IR

The Pittsburgh Penguins will finally start to feel normal again.

On Friday afternoon, the team announced that forward Evgeni Malkin has been activated from injured reserve after missing the previous 11 games. He’s expected to be in the Penguins’ lineup Saturday afternoon against the Edmonton Oilers.

In just the second game of the season, Malkin had an awkward hit into the boards against the Columbus Blue Jackets which put him on the IR.

The phrase “longer-term” was used in the initial release for the forward’s injury, but it appears that there will still a lot of season left for him to make an impact on his team.

The Penguins have gone 7-4-0 without their star centre and most recently won a one-sided affair 7-1 against the division-rival Philadelphia Flyers.

Malkin has one goal on the season after starting just two games before he was injured. Last season, the 33-year-old forward had 21 goals and 72 points in 68 games.

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