Malkin suspended 4 games for cross-checking Borowiecki

Pittsburgh Penguins superstar Evgeni Malkin has been suspended four games for cross-checking Nashville Predators blue-liner Mark Borowiecki, the NHL's Department of Player Safety announced Monday.

The play occurred in the final seconds of the second period in Sunday's game. Malkin was assessed a four-minute double-minor for high-sticking and a two-minute minor for slashing.

Borowiecki didn't return for the third period. Pittsburgh ultimately won the contest in overtime.

Malkin has one prior suspension in his career, coming in 2019 after he swung his stick at then-Philadelphia Flyers forward Michael Raffl.

Toronto Maple Leafs star Auston Matthews was suspended two games for a similar play last month after catching Rasmus Dahlin with a high cross-check.

Losing Malkin is a critical loss for the Penguins as they battle for playoff seeding. The club currently sits third in the Metropolitan Division with 94 points and eight games remaining, but the Washington Capitals are only four points behind with two games in hand. Malkin will miss half of his team's final regular-season games.