Pittsburgh Penguins News

Lizotte showed no signs of an injury in Pittsburgh's most recent game, playing 15:48 time-on-ice, but he will head to the sidelines on Monday due to a lower-body injury. The 28-year-old Lizotte has 19 points (7G / 12A) and a +6 rating through 55 games this season, but has been less effective lately, with zero points and a -6 plus/minus in his last seven. Justin Brazeau is returning from an upper-body injury and will draw into the lineup as Lizotte's replacement.

Brazeau has not played since March 7th, but will return to the lineup on Monday against the Colorado Avalanche. The 28-year-old Brazeau is seemingly returning well ahead of schedule after being listed as week-to-week on March 10th. Brazeau has been a surprising offensive contributor for Pittsburgh this season, scoring 30 points (16G / 14A) in 48 games.

Silovs had a forgetful performance in his most recent outing, allowing five goals on 16 shots (.688 SV%) in a 6-2 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights. The 24-year-old Latvian goalie has now allowed four or more goals in three straight games (1-2-0), ending a nine-game stretch where he had allowed three or fewer goals (5-2-2). The Penguins enter Monday's contest as sizeable +194 road underdogs against a league-leading Colorado Avalanche team that has lost two of their last three games (1-2-0).

Jack St. Ivany is returning from a conditioning stint with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (AHL), resulting in Alexeyev being reassigned. Alexeyev has eight points (1G / 7A) in 80 career NHL games, but has only played at the AHL level this season. The 26-year-old defenseman has seven points (3G / 4A) in 29 games this season with Wilkes-Barre Scranton.

Already without Sidney Crosby (lower body), the Penguins fared reasonably well while Malkin served a five-game suspension, going 2-1-2, but they will be eager to get him back into the lineup on Monday against the Colorado Avalanche. The 39-year-old Malkin has 47 points (13G / 34A) in 46 games this season.

The Penguins have managed to tread water without Sydney Crosby (lower body) and now Evgeni Malkin (suspension), going 3-2-3 since the Olympic break, partly due to strong netminding from Arturs Silovs. The 24-year-old Latvian goalie only has one loss in his last five outings (4-1-0), posting a solid 2.23 GAA and .917 SV%. The Penguins enter Thursday's contest as +135 road underdogs against the Vegas Golden Knights, a team they defeated 5-0 less than two weeks ago.

Girard has been in and out of the lineup since joining the Penguins, and will miss a second consecutive game due to an upper-body injury. The 27-year-old Girard has seen a slight uptick in icetime since becoming a Penguin, but is still in search of his first point through seven games.

Stastny has been sidelined for nearly 10 days, but he will re-enter the lineup on Thursday against the Dallas Stars. The 26-year-old defenseman is averaging 16:09 time-on-ice and has one goal in 31 games with the Oilers.

Graves has not played since mid January, but is nearing a return, starting with a conditioning stint with Wiles-Barre/Scranton (AHL). The 30-year-old defenseman is averaging 15:29 time-on-ice an has one goal in 19 games this season. Pittsburgh has recalled Alexander Alexeyev in a corresponding move.

Alexeyev has eight points (1G / 7A) in 80 career NHL games, but has spent the entire 2025-26 season in the AHL. The 26-year-old defenseman has seven points (3G / 4A) in 29 games this season with Wilkes-Barre Scranton (AHL).

Crosby returned to practice last week and continues to make strides towards a return, but will miss at least one more game. The Penguins have managed to stay afloat without their scoring leader, going 3-2-2, but they will be eager to welcome him back into the lineup as they continue their late-season push to return to the postseason.

Brazeau did not play in Pittsburgh's previous game and will remain sidelined on a week-to-week basis due to an upper-body injury. This will be the second time this season that Brazeau will have a prolonged absence due to an injury, which is an unfortunate loss for a team that is already without Evgeni Malkin (suspension) and Sidney Crosby (lower body). The 28-year-old Brazeau has been a surprising offensive contributor for Pittsburgh this season, scoring 30 points (16G / 14A) in 48 games.

Girard has been in and out of the lineup since joining the Penguins, and will return to the sidelines due to an upper-body injury. The 27-year-old Girard has seen a slight uptick in icetime since becoming a Penguin, but is still in search of his first point through seven games.

Malkin was involved in an altercation with Rasmus Dahlin in Thursday's game in which he appeared to slash the Sabres defenceman across the helmet. He was assessed a two-minute minor for cross-checking, a five-minute major for slashing, and a game misconduct. Dahlin was also assessed a two-minute minor for cross checking on the play. It's the third time in Malkin's 20-year-career that he has been suspended. He was previously suspended one game for high-sticking in 2019, and four games for cross-checking in 2022.