How Interested Should the Wild Be In An Evgeni Malkin Trade?

Image courtesy of Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images By Justin Hein - 55 minutes ago The Minnesota Wild trade universe has shifted significantly. When news of Dylan Larkin ’s trade request first broke, the general sentiment was that the Wild could give up whatever futures they had to acquire the 30-year-old center. It would be an all-in move, but it would extend the Stanley Cup window and maximize a roster that already sported Quinn Hughes , Kirill Kaprizov , Matt Boldy , and a deep defense corps. That was before Danila Yurov broke out . Yurov carries only a $972,500 cap hit through 2027-28 and has blossomed into a middle-six-quality center. Now, with the Wild’s reported trade offer for Larkin including Yurov and three first-round picks, it might be wise to explore trade options that keep the young Russian center in Minnesota. Some people have floated Evgeni Malkin ’s name. This raises a few key questions: Would Malkin improve this roster? How would he fit into it? And what would it take for Bill Guerin to acquire him? First, let’s consider the contract and salary cap constraints. Malkin carries a $5.5 million cap hit, and he has a no-trade clause that allows him to block trades to all but three teams. With only $3.5 million in projected trade-deadline cap space, the Wild would need to clear at least $2 million to acquire the legendary forward. They also need to convince Malkin that Minnesota is one of three destinations he’d consider. Technically, Malkin could remove contenders such as the Wild from his list if he wants to stay in Pittsburgh. For example, if he lists three teams that are starting a rebuild (the Vancouver Canucks, Calgary Flames, and Columbus Blue Jackets), it’s possible none of them would offer enough for Pittsburgh’s management to agree to a trade. After all, why would a team destined to miss the 2027 NHL playoffs trade significant assets for a 40-year-old on an expiring contract? On the other hand, Minnesota is currently projected to have a 10% chance to win the Stanley Cup per MoneyPuck.com – nearly three times higher than the projected chance of the Penguins even making the playoffs. On top of that, Malkin is due a $1 million bonus if his team makes the playoffs, plus $500,000 in bonuses for each playoff round win. That’s up to $3 million in bonuses if he wins the Stanley Cup, which gives him a strong financial incentive to leave Pittsburgh for a playoff-bound team. If Malkin is driven to win another Cup, there’s a reasonable chance Minnesota would make his three-team trade list. That list must be submitted in January, so the Wild will know well before the March 1 trade deadline whether it's possible. Clearing $2 million in cap space shouldn’t be a major issue for the Wild. It was already a consideration to bring in Larkin’s $8.7 million cap hit, and names including Yakov Trenin and Ryan Hartman could make the money work in a trade for Larkin, since each player can only block a trade to 10 teams – leaving 21 possible destinations for Hartman or Trenin. Either player could be sent to another team to clear enough space to acquire Malkin. The Wild could even explore trading Bobby Brink , who has no trade protection and is a restricted free agent in 2027. Since Malkin’s bonuses (up to $3.5 million based on games played and team playoff performance) would count against the 2027-28 salary cap, they aren’t factored into the math for bringing him in. Given the Wild’s cap flexibility in ‘27-28, this should be a non-issue. Most of those bonuses would be paid only if the Wild make a deep playoff run – if that happens, they’re probably not terribly concerned with the result of this trade. So, there’s a clear path to fitting Malkin into the Wild salary cap. That leaves two important questions: Is he good enough to merit a trade, and what should the Wild be willing to part with in exchange for the Russian forward? Both hinge on how valuable a 40-year-old Malkin is on the ice. From a production standpoint, Malkin’s offense doesn’t appear to be a concern, per HockeyReference.com . He scored 19 goals in 56 games last season and is on pace for 29 goals this year. Malkin isn’t overly dependent on power-play scoring either. He averaged 4 PPG last season and has 2 PPG this year. He’s on pace for a point per game this season, similar to his 2025-26 numbers. Based on his overall analytical value last season, BenchRates.com valued Malkin’s on-ice contributions at around $10 million per year – that’s a top-line quality player. Looking under the hood, there is clear evidence that he’s no longer the franchise center that he was in his prime. The main evidence is the sheltered role Malkin has played for the past two seasons. He has started only 2.7% of his shifts in the defensive zone this season, and only 4.2% last season. The Wild would likely need to work around that issue by deploying Malkin outside the defensive zone. Another key point against Malkin is that he’s taken only 11 faceoffs in 17 games this season – clear evidence that he’s shifted from center to wing. His faceoff count has declined significantly over the past three seasons. He took over 800 faceoffs in 2023-24, then about 630 in 2024-25, and 240 in 2025-26. Over that stretch, his faceoff win rate declined from 48.6% to 44.5%. Malkin has won only 36.4% of his faceoffs. If Minnesota wants to use him at center, they’ll lose a lot of those faceoffs. Malkin’s shift to the wing also could be tied to declining defensive play, though that would show up in his analytical output. That doesn’t appear to be the case over this season or last. This season, Malkin has dominated his five-on-five minutes with a 56.1% expected goals share (xG%). Last season, he averaged 50.3%. His sheltered role drives some of that – starting a player’s shifts outside of the defensive zone helps prevent the other team from getting shots early in a shift. Overall, the Penguins' defense has been just average in Malkin’s five-on-five minutes. He ranks 164th of 383 qualifying forwards in expected goals against per minute (xGA/60). On the other hand, keeping the puck and out-chancing his opponents outweighs the defensive liabilities. In fact, that’s what makes a Malkin trade worthwhile. Malkin’s team has gotten the better of their opponents in his minutes because he ranks 59th of 383 forwards in expected goals for per minute (xGF/60). Last season, he put up a similar ranking. It’s not unreasonable to think that a player like this could be a high-impact role player for the Wild. While they would need to find a center to take his faceoffs and keep him out of the defensive zone, Malkin’s offensive ability outweighs his defensive liabilities. His offensive skill could also create a snowball effect if he gets minutes with skilled players like Kaprizov and Hughes. Connecting them with a player like Malkin could increase their time with puck possession and drive more high-danger chances. That would free up defensive forwards such as Joel Eriksson Ek , Blake Coleman , and even Matt Boldy to play in a shutdown role, without losing the offensive punch that those players provide in their minutes with Kaprizov and Hughes. There’s always the risk that Malkin’s play declines, given his age. Evidence of that is already apparent in his sheltered role, but he could be a meaningful upgrade over Hartman, Trenin, or Brink. With all those considerations, Malkin seems to check a lot of boxes for the Wild. The question of center depth remains unanswered, though Malkin could play center in a pinch. If Joel Eriksson Ek gets hurt in the playoffs, Malkin would be ill-suited for a top-line center role. On the other hand, he could be a useful substitute for Yurov, Hartman, or McCarron if they get injured. This probably means that the Wild would prefer to keep Hartman on the roster, rather than deal him in a cap-clearing move. That brings us back to the question of price. Malkin’s sen