When Evgeni Malkin left the lineup after an awkward collision with Boston’s Jarred Tinordi on March 16, joining fourth-line center Teddy Blueger on the injured reserve, one might have expected Mark Jankowski—who was signed this offseason in the explicit hope of filling the third-line center role— to be shuffled up to a more prominent position in the lineup.
Instead, with the dust having settled from the powerhouse Russian’s sudden departure, Jared McCann has taken over Malkin’s spot. Meanwhile, Jankowski has been relegated to the fourth line, where his ice time often dips under 10 minutes per game.