Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin & son Nikita take part in emotional pregame celebration of Evgeni Malkin's 500-goal milestone

The Pittsburgh Penguins have fallen on hard times of late, struggling through another inconsistent campaign that has led many fans to wonder if the clock is ticking on head coach Mike Sullivan's time behind the bench.

However, in a more positive vein, the Penguins took the time to honor a franchise icon ahead of their game on Wednesday night against the visiting Detroit Red Wings at PPG Paints Arena.

Longtime Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin, a principal element in each of Pittsburgh's 2009, 2016 and 2017 Stanley Cup victories, was honored in a special pregame ceremony in commemoration of his 500th career goal, scored earlier this season against the Buffalo Sabres.

There were multiple recorded video tributes to him from former teammates, including Marc-Andre Fleury, Mark Recchi, Ryan Whitney and Patric Hornqvist. Additionally, fellow Russian star Alex Ovechkin sent Malkin his congratulations as well.

“Hey Geno, congrats on your 500th NHL goal,” Ovechkin said in a video. “It’s huge accomplishment. Welcome to the club. Keep it going. Happy for you, man.”

It was a moment of good sportsmanship between the two Russian rivals, who have faced each other multiple times in the postseason in what were truly fierce battles between the Penguins and Washington Capitals over the years.

Additionally, Malkin's son Nikita also had a special message for his dad:

"Dad, congratulations on 500 goals!" he said. "I love you very much and wish you many more goals and good health!"

Evgeni Malkin becomes 48th player in NHL history to reach 500 goals scored

The historic tally took place at PPG Paints Arena against the visiting Buffalo Sabres on Oct. 16 after beating goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. As soon as Malkin scored, all of his Penguins teammates exited the bench to congratulate him on the milestone:

Malkin said afterward that he was relieved to notch the historic tally, and that he may have been thinking about it too much during the offseason.

"I really wanted to score [the 500th goal] last year," Malkin said via ESPN.com. "All summer, I was probably thinking too much about it. It was a long way to 500 and I'm glad to finally do it."

Fittingly, the goal was assisted by longtime teammate and fellow future Hall of Fame forward Sidney Crosby.

"It was a pretty awesome goal," Crosby said. "I had a front-row seat watching him do that. I'll have a great memory of that one."

Both Malkin and Crosby will have their respective jersey numbers retired by the Penguins when their playing careers come to an end, and they're both also be shoo-ins to be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.