With forward Evgeni Malkin sidelined due to an undisclosed injury, the Pittsburgh Penguins fell to the San Jose Sharks, 2-1, at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif. on Monday. Earlier in the day, the team placed Malkin on injured reserve.

Rakell registered an assist and took two shots on goal in Saturday's 4-1 loss to Seattle. Rakell's helper came in the second period on linemate Sidney Crosby's lone goal of the contest for the Penguins.

The Penguins’ three-man core of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang has played together for 19 seasons, a record for North American sports. It’s a nice story. The unbreakable bond of eternal brotherhood.

Rakell has 23 goals, 40 points, 77 hits and 53 blocks in 48 outings in 2024-25. He'll likely resume his role on the top line alongside Sidney Crosby and Bryan Rust. That might in turn shift Anthony Beauvillier from the Crosby line to Evgeni Malkin's unit and knock Cody Glass off the top six.

UTAH: #28 IAN COLE - Cole spent parts of four seasons with the Penguins and won two Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017 alongside current Utah teammate Olli Määttä. The defenseman has 13 points (1G, 12A) and ranks second in the NHL with 135 blocked shots.

The Pittsburgh Penguins (20-24-8) have one more chance to salvage a good feeling from this extended seven-game road trip that seemingly began a lifetime ago with a joyous victory over the Buffalo Sabres and Alex Nedeljkovic’s goalie goal.

The Penguins' secondary scoring has evaporated, placing a bigger burden on top-liners Sidney Crosby and Bryan Rust. That's part of the logic behind a double-double stack for Josh Inglis, who presents his three best NHL props for tonight.

Dan Rosen of NHL.com: If a team comes to the Pittsburgh Penguins with a too good to be true offer, they have to consider it. There doesn’t appear to be anything imminent, especially with Sidney Crosby. He signed a two-year extension and said he plans to honor it.

THROUGH GAMES OF WEDNESDAY, JAN. 29, 2025

Clayton Keller and Sidney Crosby are two of the best players to watch when the Utah Hockey Club play the Pittsburgh Penguins at Delta Center on Wednesday, January 29 at 9:30 PM ET. Buy tickets for this matchup at StubHub!

Utah Hockey Club (21-21-7, 49 points, 6th place Central Division) When: 9:30 p.m. ET How to Watch: Broadcasting on Sportsnet Pittsburgh locally, national game on TNT and streaming on Max Pens’ Path Ahead: Tonight is the end of a seven-game road trip (2-4-0 record).

The Pittsburgh Penguins are digging themselves into a deeper hole game after game. Even with franchise pieces Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin playing out of their minds, the team can’t find a way out of the league’s basement.