Malkin to Los Angeles?

Over at Puck Daddy, Greg Wyshynski is pondering the hottest rumor in hockey: Bruce Garrioch's report that the Pittsburgh Penguins are actively shopping Evgeni Malkin for salary cap reasons and that the Los Angeles Kings are first in line:

Malkin for [Mike] Cammalleri and what could be blue-chip defenseman Drew Doughty or Russian dynamo Nikita Filatov would be at best a steal for the Kings and, at worst, close to equal value once the rookies ripen.

No kidding. Greg goes on to add that a deal like this could be a real moment of truth for the Kings franchise, and I can't disagree. If this rumor is even close to being true, and when you're dealing with Garrioch you always have to wonder out loud whether or not it is, there's no reason in my mind that LA GM Dean Lombardi wouldn't be doing anything and everything in his power to get the paperwork on this signed, sealed and delivered before Pittsburgh GM Ray Shero changes his mind.

But as mind boggling as this deal might be, there's another question we ought to be asking: Whether or not Malkin wants to stay in Pittsburgh, is it really in his best interest to do so?

I can't help but think back to the just completed season and recall that Malkin didn't come into his own until Sidney Crosby was lost to injury. No matter how long Malkin might be in Pittsburgh, the Penguins will always be Crosby's team. Maybe moving 3,000 miles and lifting a team on his own shoulders might just show us what Malkin could really do?