Evgeni Malkin believes he'll be able to return from injury before the postseason gets underway.

"I feel I'm ready to play," the Pittsburgh Penguins superstar told reporters Wednesday. "I want (a) couple more games before playoffs. I need confidence back, I need (the) feel in (a) game, feeling (the) puck. I hope (Thursday) I wake up and I feel great and I'm ready to play."

Malkin practiced with his teammates Wednesday, and head coach Mike Sullivan called him a game-time decision for Thursday's game against the Detroit Red Wings, which will be Pittsburgh's penultimate regular-season contest.

He has missed the last eight games with what the club classified as an upper-body ailment, and was labeled week-to-week on March 17.

Malkin has notched 50 assists and 71 points in 66 games this season.

The Penguins close out their regular-season schedule Saturday night against the New York Rangers.

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Glen Sather will be retiring from his longtime role as the president of the New York Rangers by season's end, Sportsnet's John Shannon reports.

Sather will still reportedly be an advisor to the executive chairman and CEO of the Madison Square Garden Company, James Dolan, but will not be involved in the day-to-day operation of the team.

The news was first reported by TSN's Bob McKenzie, who added that the decision is entirely up to Sather.

Sather joined the Rangers organization in 2000 as the club's president and general manager. The 75-year-old also assumed head coaching duties during parts of the 2002-03 and 2003-04 seasons.

Following the 2014-15 season, he stepped down from his GM role and was replaced by the team's current GM, Jeff Gorton.

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On the eve of his 40th birthday Thursday, Florida Panthers netminder Roberto Luongo is still undecided on whether he'll continue to man an NHL crease beyond the current campaign.

"I don't really want to make any decisions over the course of a season," Luongo said, according to The Associated Press. "Obviously, there's a lot of emotions involved with that and you want to make sure that you make the right decision for all parties involved. I still love to play the game, and we'll see where it goes."

Luongo still has three years remaining on his contract, and his team-leading 2,286 minutes between the pipes this season may indicate that the veteran has some gas left in the tank.

Known for his humorous social media presence, the five-time All-Star took to Twitter on Monday to poke some fun at the press for suggesting that recent injury concerns could lead to his retirement.

Luongo took a more serious approach when speaking with the media on the matter, noting that he doesn't appreciate what he perceives as falsified reporting.

"The only thing that I don't really enjoy is when you see something that's completely fabricated," Luongo said. "That's the part that sometimes you're not too happy about. But that being said, I've been through it many times. I handled it the best way that I could by making a joke out of it, and I'm moving on from there."

Luongo was selected fourth overall at the 1997 NHL Draft by the New York Islanders. Over his career, he's spent one season on Long Island, eight with the Vancouver Canucks, and 11 with the Panthers.

The Montreal native ranks second in NHL history in games played among goalies and third in wins with 489. Should he decide to continue his playing career, Luongo will have a chance to join Martin Brodeur and Patrick Roy as the only netminders in NHL history to win 500 career games.

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Marc-Andre Fleury is hoping to make at least one appearance in goal for the Vegas Golden Knights before the regular season comes to an end.

"We'll see what (coach Gerard Gallant) wants," Fleury said Wednesday, according to NHL.com's Nicholas J. Cotsonika. "But at least the last one. Hopefully maybe tomorrow too."

The 34-year-old netminder has missed the team's last nine contests with an undisclosed injury. The Golden Knights play against the Arizona Coyotes on Thursday before closing out the season against the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday.

Fleury was sensational between the pipes for Vegas before his injury, winning his previous six starts and conceding just five goals in the process. Though he's relieved by the timing of his recovery, Fleury admits there's no way to simulate the pace and intensity of a real NHL game.

"I find you can do a lot in practice, a lot in the gym, but it's never like a game," Fleury said. "So I think it would be good to get out there and get into traffic, try to find pucks, and get used to the speed of the game a bit again. So, it'll be good."

The three-time Stanley Cup champion was an essential part of the Golden Knights' magical run to the Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural season last year. Fleury posted a record of 12-3 with a .947 save percentage and four shutouts through the first three rounds of the 2018 playoffs.

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It appears "The Great Eight" has his sights set on The Great One's all-time goal record.

Washington Capitals superstar Alex Ovechkin has collected 658 career tallies over 14 NHL seasons and needs 237 goals to break Wayne Gretzky's mark of 894. The 33-year-old understands that he'll have to stay in prime condition if he's going to eclipse Gretzky's famed record.

"I have to be healthy. I have to be in good shape," Ovechkin said, according to NHL.com's Tom Gulitti. "I'm going to try to do it, but you don't know what's going to happen in the future."

The 6-foot-3 sniper became just the third player in NHL history to record eight 50-goal campaigns - after Gretzky and Mike Bossy - this season. With Ovechkin playing for one of the league's elite teams and showing no signs of slowing down, Gretzky knows his record isn't safe.

"He's a good athlete, he plays in a great organization, he plays with good players, which you have to do, and there's no question he has a legitimate chance," Gretzky said. "Good for him. … If he does, I'll be the first guy to shake his hand. I think it's great for the game."

Ovechkin - a seven-time Rocket Richard Trophy winner - is on pace to lead the league in goals for a record eighth time. He currently holds a four-goal advantage on John Tavares and Leon Draisaitl with two games remaining.

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Welcome to Puck Pursuit, a weekly NHL podcast hosted by John Matisz, theScore's National Hockey Writer.

Subscribe to the show on iTunes, SoundCloud, Stitcher, Google Play, and Spotify.

In this episode, Sportsnet's Ryan Dixon joins John to hand out end-of-season awards. Trophies discussed:

• Calder (most proficient rookie)
• Hart (most valuable player)
• Jack Adams (coach of the year)
• Lady Byng (most gentlemanly player)
• Masterton (best example of perseverance)
• Norris (best all-around defenseman)
• Selke (best defensive forward)
• Vezina (best goalie)

... and more!

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Chase Priskie has told the Washington Capitals he won't be signing with the team and will instead become an unrestricted free agent on Aug. 15, TSN's Bob McKenzie reports.

The 23-year-old defenseman racked up 17 goals and 39 points in 36 games during his senior season with Quinnipiac.

Washington selected Priskie 177th overall in the 2016 draft.

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