Brian Dumoulin has been with the Penguins since for nearly a decade now. He’s watched Pittsburgh’s star core rise to the game’s highest level, winning consecutive Stanley Cups. He’s also tasted disappointment of late, with the Penguins losing in four straight first round series in the NHL Playoffs.
In that core has been Evgeni Malkin, who missed half of last season after recovering from knee surgery.
Dumoulin watched as Malkin put together a statistically successful season, with 20 goals and 22 assists in 41 games. But he also saw a player that never quite looked like the dominant force that Malkin had been in previous seasons.
“It’s tough to have that much time off from the game, off from hockey, and stuff to come back and be the same guy you were when you were healthy and playing consistently at that level for your whole career,” Dumoulin told 93.7 The Fan Wednesday. “I mean, I know he's had some injuries in the past, but when you have a consistent stretch of play for a certain amount of time and you take a long time off, it's tough, especially when you have the expectation of yourself and a lot of people have the expectation of you to be the same player.”
Expectations for Malkin were certainly high when he returned. And scoring over a point per game is a solid mark, without question, even if one of the franchise's all-time greats appeared to have lost a step.
“He still played great last year,” Dumoulin said. “Now he's got a full training camp and got to work out in the summer and rehab, and not have to worry about a nagging injury, which is amazing.”
Malkin has been amazing. And that 'lost step' might have been found. A year removed from the surgery, and he appears to be getting back to the top of his game. He’s scored three goals and assisted another in Pittsburgh 2-0-1 start.
“You see him now and he's Geno,” said Dumoulin, who identified Malkin’s rounding back into form earlier this offseason. “He's just a tremendous player. He's fun to watch every night. You never know he's going to do with the puck, but it's always amazing to watch.
“He’s just a dynamic player and it didn't take us long to see that Gino’s Gino.”
Hear more of Josh Rowntree’s sit down with Penguins defenseman Brian Dumoulin below.