Up 3-1 in the third period, at home, against a Columbus Blue Jackets team that has been making a move in the standings, the Penguins collapsed and ultimately fell in a shootout, 4-3.

Penguins center Evgeni Malkin missed Tuesday's 4-3 shootout loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets with an upper-body injury. It was the first time the 38-year-old Malkin had missed a game since the 2021-22 season,

Pittsburgh Penguins center Evgeni Malkin missed Tuesday’s home game against the Columbus Blue Jackets with an upper-body injury

The P Penguins (17-17-7) have been trending sideways since the holiday break ended. They have just one win in five games but have lost only two of those five in regulation. The Penguins remain in the thick of the Eastern Conference playoff race and are one of four teams with 40 or 41 points.

The Pittsburgh Penguins lineup got a little jolt Tuesday when coach Mike Sullivan decided to re-insert Jesse Puljujarvi onto the third line, but it got a major jolt when Evgeni Malkin was not on the ice for warmups.

The Pittsburgh Penguins have seen superstar veteran Evgeni Malkin play in every game since he returned from offseason surgery ahead of the 2021-22 season. Ahead of their meeting with the Columbus Blue Jackets,

The Blue Jackets and Penguins play for the second time this season. The next two games, however, will be in a house of horrors for Columbus.

Pittsburgh Penguins superstar forwards Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin had been in the lineup for each of the team’s 164 games over the previous two seasons. And both campaigns ended with the Penguins failing to qualify for the postseason.