DENVER _ Evgeni Malkin won't play when the Penguins face Colorado on Thursday night at 9:08 at the Pepsi Center but could return as early as Saturday.
Malkin went through the Penguins' optional game-day skate Thursday and, while coach Mike Sullivan characterized it as a "full-contact" workout, there actually was very little hitting.
But if Malkin can get through a practice in Glendale, Ariz., on Friday with no problem, there's a pretty good chance he'll be in the lineup against the Coyotes the next night.
"He's obviously making significant progress, so that's encouraging from our standpoint," Sullivan said.
He added that "there's a possibility" Malkin, who will miss his sixth game in a row because of an unspecified injury Thursday, will rejoin the lineup in Arizona.
