STOCKHOLM — More than a year ago, Evgeni Malkin sat at his PPG Paints Arena locker and explained his feelings regarding his final years in the NHL.

He was asked if he would retire without tasting playoff hockey again.

“One hundred percent no,” the longtime Pittsburgh Penguins star forward told The Athletic in September 2024. “I love the playoffs so much and I love our fans so much. I need to feel it again. I couldn’t leave if I never play in the playoffs again. Not until then.”

Now, he might have his chance — and he’s been a huge reason for it.

The Penguins, who play the Nashville Predators in two NHL Global Series games in Stockholm on Friday and Sunday, find themselves in playoff position with the regular season nearly 25 percent complete.

Malkin, mindful of what he said more than a year ago and of his contract expiring after this season, has said often recently that this could be the end of the road. He also said he doesn’t want to retire at the end of this season, which is his 20th. No matter which path he takes, Malkin craves one more postseason trip. And he thinks this team is eminently capable.

“Yeah, for sure,” he said Thursday in Stockholm. “We read articles before (the) season (that said) we’re not good enough anymore. It’s hard. Last three years, we didn’t show our best game. But we changed coaches, a couple of new faces. We try our best. (Sidney Crosby) is playing unbelievable. This is a good group. If we stay healthy, for sure we can make the playoffs.”

Malkin has 21 points through 17 games and, although his scoring touch has begun to erode, the rest of his game has not. His playmaking has been exceptional and, largely because of his contributions, the Penguins sit in third place in the tight Metropolitan Division:

While Malkin’s point total is impressive, he insists that his own numbers don’t mean much at this stage of his career. The wins sure do, though.

“We come to Sweden to win two games,” he said. “I’m not thinking about my (personal) game right now. I want to help the team win. The power play is working. The PK is blocking shots. I love being here with my teammates.”

Winning cures all, after all.

It’s been three long seasons for the Penguins, who are in a rebuild and not expected to contend this season. Then again, this isn’t your typical rebuild.

“The Penguins are in a weird spot,” said Penguins forward Kevin Hayes. “We haven’t made the playoffs in a while, but there are still Hall of Fame players on this team. It’s a weird thing. You can’t really ‘rebuild’ when you have Hall of Famers who still want to win. Those guys set the tone. You don’t want to disappoint them. I think that trickles through our team, to be honest. Everyone knows Sid is the hardest-working guy. But Geno works his ass off. Tanger (Kris Letang), too. You don’t want to disappoint them.”

No one is disappointing Malkin, who referred to himself as “very happy.”

His teammates are happy for him, too: When Malkin’s name is brought up in the locker room, it’s met with smiles.

“He’s playing really well,” Letang said. “When you see a guy at that age (39) playing the way he’s playing, you know he’s got something left in the tank. It’s good to see him back at this level.”

As a 12-year NHL forward, Hayes has endured his share of regular-season and playoff wars with Malkin, but as a teammate, Hayes has gained a new perspective.

“You create opinions on players that you play against, guys you don’t know,” Hayes said. “Geno is the opposite of what I expected. He’s someone who loves the game. He’s super smart. He thinks the game through. He’s also one of the hardest-working guys on the team. He’s become one of my favorite teammates ever.”

If you ask Hayes, Malkin is 39 in age only.

“Look at him out there,” Hayes said. “Guy looks like he’s 25 years old out there. He’s a monster. He’s fun to watch right now.”

Malkin has developed a swift chemistry with 11-year NHL veteran Anthony Mantha, whose eight goals are second on the team behind only Crosby. Over the years, Malkin could become upset with his linemates, notably James Neal and Phil Kessel, on the bench. While Malkin was friends with them off the ice and had wonderful chemistry with them on the ice, he can be a perfectionist, which Mantha knows all too well.

“Guys told me I better be on my game because he’ll get on me if I don’t play,” Mantha said with a laugh. “I’ve been trying to stay on his good side. So far, so good.”

Malkin’s strong start has made Mantha’s job as a winger pretty simple.

“Look at him,” Mantha said. “Watching this guy is awesome.”

Making the playoffs would be pretty awesome for a team that wasn’t expected to get a sniff of the postseason.

Mantha was a believer all along.

“When I signed in July, some of you guys (media) asked me if this could be a playoff team, and I said yeah,” he said. “Pittsburgh still has a few players who can change a game at any time. Hall of Fame players. And Geno is still one of those guys. He’s proving it every night. We can make the playoffs. That’s the goal.”

Many of the Penguins credit Malkin’s play for their belief in this team.

“He’s incredible,” Hayes said. “There’s a mindset on this team that we can win. He’s a huge part of it.”

There’s a real chip on the shoulder in the Penguins locker room.

“It doesn’t matter what the media says about us,” Letang said. “What matters is how we play. It’s been the attitude in this room for a long time. Geno is a big part of it.”

Malkin regularly brings up his contract status unsolicited. He did it again on Thursday and is clearly using his and the Penguins’ resurgence as fuel. The Penguins haven’t shown an interest in bringing him back for another season. President/general manager Kyle Dubas has said he will speak with Malkin and his representatives during the Olympic break in February. Malkin doesn’t want to retire yet, nor does he want to play for another team.

“If you guys (media) are happy (with our play), then I’m happy too,” Malkin said with a laugh. “I’m not trying to think about maybe a new contract, maybe one more year. I said before the season that I want to be happy, just play my game, not thinking too much, just enjoy every day, enjoy hockey. I’m enjoying every day, going to the rink, trying to do my best.”

So far, his best has been plenty good enough.

Practice notes

• The Penguins practiced for an hour in Stockholm on Thursday morning. The top two lines remained intact in practice, with Crosby centering Bryan Rust and Ben Kindel, while Malkin centered Mantha and Tommy Novak. The Penguins have tried an assortment of combinations for their bottom-six forwards. They finished practice by extensively working on the power play.

• The Penguins will have a morning skate here on Friday before playing the Predators at 8 p.m. Friday in Stockholm, which is 2 p.m. ET.