Crosby, Malkin, Letang to return with Penguins, GM says

3 years ago  /  NHL.com  /  Read Time: 3 minutes 24 seconds

• The Pittsburgh Penguins will keep their championship core players together next season in search of another Stanley Cup title, general manager Ron Hextall said Wednesday.
• Hextall said discussions are ongoing on possible contract extensions for center Evgeni Malkin and defenseman Kris Letang.
• Malkin, Letang and center Sidney Crosby won Stanley Cup championships with Pittsburgh in 2009, 2016 and 2017, but they and the Penguins have not gotten past the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in three straight seasons. .
• Malkin ($9.5 million) and Letang ($7.25 million) will each enter the final season of his contract. .
• Crosby advocated that the Penguins should return intact next season after they were ousted by the Islanders.
• "As far as what I can see and how I feel, there's zero doubt in my mind that the group that we have is a really good group and we had an opportunity here," Crosby said May 27.
• "These guys have been here a long time," Hextall said.
• Hextall said Sullivan, and the coaching staff as a whole, did a "terrific job" guiding the Penguins through injuries, including a knee injury that kept Malkin out 23 games. .
• After one season with Sullivan, Hextall said they agree on how much, or little, the roster should change in the offseason. .
• "We're excited about our group," Hextall said.
• "Sid, [Letang, Malkin], they're not in their 20s anymore.
• Backup goalie Casey DeSmith, who was 11-7-0 with a 2.54 GAA, a .912 save percentage and two shutouts this season, was out during the playoffs because of a groin injury. 
• "We do feel like Tristan did a good job for us this year," Hextall said

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