PITTSBURGH (AP) — Evgeni Malkin had a goal and an assist in his first NHL game action in more than seven months, and the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Detroit Red Wings 3-2 on Wednesday night in the preseason opener for both teams.
Malkin, a former NHL scoring champion, didn’t play after Feb. 5 when he tore an ACL and joined star teammate Sidney Crosby on the sideline down the stretch and into the playoffs.
Chris Kunitz and Matt Niskanen also scored for Pittsburgh (1-0). Niklas Kronwall and Jiri Hudler scored for the Red Wings (0-1) and Pavel Datsyuk had two assists.
Crosby has not been cleared for contact workouts due to a concussion.
Jordan Staal and Brooks Orpik did not play for Pittsburgh, while Nicklas Lidstrom and Henrik Zetterberg didn’t dress for Detroit.
