Denis Malgin
Birth date18 January 1997 (age 29)
Birth placeOlten, Switzerland
Height1.75[1] m
Weight kg81
PositionCentre
ShootsRight
LeagueNL
TeamZSC Lions
Former teamsFlorida Panthers
Toronto Maple Leafs
Lausanne HC
Colorado Avalanche
Ntl teamSUI
Draft (2015)102nd overall
Draft teamFlorida Panthers
Career start2013

Denis Malgin (born 18 January 1997) is a Swiss professional ice hockey player who is a centre for the ZSC Lions of the National League (NL). Malgin was selected by the Florida Panthers in the fourth round, 102nd overall, of the 2015 NHL entry draft.

Playing career

Malgin made his National League A debut playing with ZSC Lions during the 2014–15 season.[2] He was selected in the fourth round (102nd overall) in the 2015 NHL entry draft by the Florida Panthers.

On 25 July 2016, Malgin signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Panthers.[3]

Malgin made the Panthers' opening night roster for the 2016–17 season.[4] He made his NHL debut on 13 October against the New Jersey Devils.[5] His first career point, an assist, came in his second NHL game, against the Detroit Red Wings on 15 October.[6] He scored his first NHL goal on 2 November against Tuukka Rask of the Boston Bruins.[7] Malgin finished the season with ten points in 47 games. He also skated in 15 games for the Panthers' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Springfield Thunderbirds.

Malgin spent the entirety of the 2018–19 season with the Panthers, recording 16 points in 50 games. On 26 August 2019, the Panthers re-signed Malgin to a one-year contract extension.[8]

During the 2019–20 season, Malgin registered 12 points in 36 games with the Panthers before he was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for forward Mason Marchment on 19 February 2020.[9]

On 2 October 2020, Toronto re-signed Malgin to a one-year contract extension worth $ 700 000. He began the 2020–21 NL season with Lausanne HC on loan from the Leafs while the start of the North American was delayed due to the ongoing pandemic. Malgin was placed on waivers by the Leafs on 5 January 2021 in order to continue with Lausanne for the remainder of the season.[10] On 2 May, Malgin was re-assigned to the Toronto Marlies of the AHL.[11]

On 6 September 2021, Malgin returned to the ZSC Lions as a free agent, agreeing to a four-year deal.[12]

On 13 July 2022, Malgin returned to the NHL, signing a one-year, $ 750 000 contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs.[13] After a successful training camp and productive pre-season, finishing as one of the team's offensive leaders, Malgin made the Maple Leafs opening night roster to begin the 2022–23 season.[14] Malgin collected 4 points through 23 games before his tenure with the Maple Leafs ended as he was traded to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for Dryden Hunt on 19 December 2022.[15] He made his Avalanche debut, initially featuring on the third-line, in a 2-1 overtime victory over the Montreal Canadiens on 21 December 2022.[16]

As a pending restricted free agent with arbitration rights and with the Avalanche facing salary cap constraints, Malgin was not tendered a qualifying offer by the club and was released as a free agent.[17] Unsatisfied with the NHL interest at the opening of free agency, Malgin opted to return Switzerland and sign a five-year contract with his original club, ZSC Lions, on 18 July 2023.[18]

In the 2023–24 season, Malgin emerged as a top-line offensive threat with the Lions and led the team in scoring with 47 points through 48 regular season games. In the post-season, he continued to lead ZSC's attack in posting 14 points in 15 playoff appearances. During the Championship clinching game for ZSC, Malgin sustained a knee injury, which would later rule him out of the following 2024 IIHF World Championship.[19]

International play

Malgin competed for Switzerland at the 2015 IIHF World U18 Championships, where he was named to the 2015 IIHF World U18 Championship All-Star Team.[20]

Personal life

Malgin's parents are originally from Russia. His father Albert played for teams in the Soviet Union before moving to Switzerland to continue his career.[21] It was he who introduced Malgin to ice hockey; at age three, Malgin began skating with his father's team.[22] Malgin's brother Dmitri is also a professional ice hockey player, playing in the 1ère Ligue, the fourth-tier league in Switzerland.

Growing up, Malgin returned to Perm, Russia, every summer, where his father is from. He grew up speaking Russian, though he learned Swiss German at school.[21]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular seasonPlayoffs
SeasonTeamLeagueGPGAPtsPIMGPGAPtsPIM
2012–13ZSC LionsSUI U177610161654594
2012–13GCK LionsSUI U20251511261431122
2013–14GCK LionsNLB386131914
2013–14GCK LionsSUI U2075168
2014–15GCK LionsNLB2466124
2014–15ZSC LionsNLA232688184264
2014–15GCK LionsSUI U2051894
2015–16GCK LionsSUI U201011021120
2015–16GCK LionsNLB72350
2015–16ZSC LionsNLA38512171230000
2016–17Florida PanthersNHL4764108
2016–17Springfield ThunderbirdsAHL15391214
2017–18Springfield ThunderbirdsAHL13410140
2017–18Florida PanthersNHL511111226
2018–19Florida PanthersNHL50791614
2019–20Florida PanthersNHL36481212
2019–20Toronto Maple LeafsNHL80002
2020–21Lausanne HCNL451923425642136
2021–22ZSC LionsNL48213152491799182
2022–23Toronto Maple LeafsNHL232244
2022–23Colorado AvalancheNHL4211617470002
2023–24ZSC LionsNL48182947261568144
2024–25ZSC LionsNL391323362416713202
NL totals241781242021757328336118
NHL totals2574140815070002

International

YearTeamEventResultGPGAPtsPIM
2013SwitzerlandU186th52244
2013SwitzerlandIH186th41232
2014SwitzerlandU187th53472
2015SwitzerlandWJC9th61670
2015SwitzerlandU184th73252
2016SwitzerlandWJC9th61896
2017SwitzerlandWC6th70002
2022SwitzerlandOG8th31014
2022SwitzerlandWC5th857124
2023SwitzerlandWC5th62464
2025SwitzerlandWC9110116
Junior totals3311243516
Senior totals339213020

Awards and honors

AwardYear
NL
Youngster of the Year2015
Media Swiss All-Star Team2021[15]
Media All-Star Team2022[15]
Champion (ZSC Lions)2024[23]
International
World U18 Championships All-Star Team2015[20]

References

  1. ^ Malgin at Lions, https://www.zsclions.ch/1-mannschaft/team/spieler/62-malgin/
  2. ^ "Does Denis Malgin have NHL potential?". thehockeywriters.com. 2015-06-21. Retrieved 2015-06-21.
  3. ^ "Panthers Sign Forward Denis Malgin to Entry-Level Contract". NHL.com. 25 July 2016. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  4. ^ Fialkov, Harvey. "Life without injured Huberdeau and Bjugstad begins for Panthers". Sun Sentinel. Retrieved 10 October 2016.
  5. ^ Richards, George. "Bittersweet Sixteen: Barkov honors Fernandez, leads Panthers to win with OT goal". Miami Herald. Retrieved 13 October 2016.
  6. ^ "NHL: premier assist de Denis Malgin avec les Florida Panthers" (in fr-FR). www.lacote.ch. 16 October 2016. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  7. ^ Poupart, Alain (2016-11-02). "Tuukka Rask makes 33 saves in Bruins win". NHL.com. Retrieved 2017-11-04.
  8. ^ "Florida Panthers Agree to Terms with Forward Denis Malgin". Florida Panthers. Retrieved 26 August 2019.
  9. ^ "Maple Leafs acquire Denis Malgin from Panthers for Marchment". The Sports Network. 19 February 2020. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
  10. ^ "Denis Malgin placed on waivers by the Toronto Maple Leafs". swisshockeynews.ch. 5 January 2021. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
  11. ^ "Toronto Marlies transactions". American Hockey League. 2 May 2021. Retrieved 17 November 2022.
  12. ^ "Denis Malgin returns to the ZSC Lions". swisshockeynews.ch. 6 September 2021. Archived from the original on 6 September 2021. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  13. ^ elseldo (2022-07-13). "UPDATED: Toronto Maple Leafs sign Denis Malgin". Pension Plan Puppets. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  14. ^ "Leafs hopeful Denis Malgin might crack opening roster". Toronto Star. 19 December 2022. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  15. ^ "Avalanche acquires Denis Malgin from Toronto". Colorado Avalanche. 19 December 2022. Retrieved 20 December 2022.
  16. ^ "Rantanen scores in OT, Avalanche beat Canadiens 2-1". USA Today. 21 December 2022. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
  17. ^ "Avalanche's Denis Malgin, Ryan Merkley to become unrestricted free agents". Denver Post. June 30, 2023. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  18. ^ "Denis Malgin returns to the ZSC Lions" (in German). ZSC Lions. 18 July 2023. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
  19. ^ "ZSC Lions wins Swiss title; Malgin injures knee". thehockeynews.com. 1 May 2024. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
  20. ^ "IIHF announces U18 All-Star Team". IIHF. 2015-05-21. Archived 1 May 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2015-06-21.
  21. ^ Yakobson, Alexander (2013-04-23). "Hope of Swiss Hockey?". IIHF. Retrieved 2017-11-04.
  22. ^ Fialkov, Harvey (2016-09-19). "Diminutive Swiss teen Malgin shows off big game for Panthers". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved 2017-11-04.
  23. ^ "The ZSC Lions win the 2023-24 championship". swisshockeynews.ch. 30 April 2024. Archived from the original on 1 May 2024. Retrieved 30 April 2024.