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Report: Malkin’s going to Worlds, Crosby’s not

Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin

Pittsburgh Penguins’ Sidney Crosby (87) celebrates a goal by Evgeni Malkin (71), of Russia, during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Newark, N.J., Saturday, March 17, 2012. Crosby got an assist on the play. (AP Photo/Mel Evans)

AP

Just two days after the Penguins were eliminated by the Rangers in Game 7 of their second-round series, the team’s two biggest stars have made up their minds regarding international competition.

Evgeni Malkin is set to join Russia for the World Championships, per Sports.ru’s Igor Eronko, while captain Sidney Crosby will pass on suiting up for Canada, according to the Post-Gazette.

Malkin’s decision to join Team Russia isn’t surprising, as a number of players that suited up for the squad that disappointed at the Winter Olympics have returned to make amends at the Worlds -- Alex Ovechkin, Sergei Bobrovsky, Anton Belov, Nikolai Kulemin and Artem Anisimov, to name a few.

It’s also not surprising that Crosby’s elected to stay in North America. Canada’s contingent at the Worlds contains no players from the gold medal-winning Olympic squad and Crosby is coming off a year in which he played a significant amount of hockey: 80 regular-season games, six in Sochi and 13 in the postseason. It’s the most Crosby has played in four years.