Evgeni Malkin is in the process of obtaining a visa to travel to the United States and could be already in the country, according to a Russian journalist who once served as his translator. But whether Malkin plays for the Penguins this season apparently will come down to legalities and money.

"I think he's in the process of getting an America visa or he's already here," said Slava Malamud, who works with the Moscow-based Sport Express, the largest sports publication in Eastern Europe.

"He could be signed with the Penguins in two weeks," said Malamud, who is based in Washington and just returned from Moscow after writing about Malkin's contract situation with Metallurg Magnitogorsk.

The general director of Malkin's hometown team in the Russian Super League told the Reuters news service in Moscow that he will sue to receive fair compensation if Malkin plays in Pittsburgh this season. He confirmed that the prized Penguins prospect jumped the team Saturday.

"We've put so much resources, effort and money into Malkin's development as a player," Gennady Velichkin told Reuters yesterday. "He was our gold diamond, our prized possession. He had a contract with us. We were building the whole team around him and now he is gone. But don't think we will just sit there and do nothing. We will go to court to get what we believe is just compensation."

Malkin's agent, J.P. Barry of IMG Hockey in Los Angeles, could not be reached for comment. But he said last week that Malkin's wish is to play for the Penguins this season.

The Penguins had no comment on the developments, according to Tom McMillan, the team's vice president of communications. Although Malkin was the team's No. 1 draft pick and the second player taken overall in the 2004 draft, he has no contractual ties to the Penguins, who hold his draft rights until 2008.

Malkin, 20, signed a one-year contract last week with his Russian team. But under Russian labor laws, he could give two weeks notice to his employer to get out of that deal, allowing him to play for the Penguins this season.

Malkin is considered the top hockey talent not yet playing in the NHL.

The Penguins will open their training camp for rookies around the first week of September.

There is plenty of precedent for Russian players getting out of contracts in their homeland. The Dynamo Moscow team was unable to legally force Alexander Ovechkin, the top pick in the 2004 draft and the NHL's rookie of the year last season, to return to them.

Nikolai Zherdev, the No. 1 pick of the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2003, snuck out of Moscow to come to America. His CSKA team and the Russian federation tried to extract more money on top of a transfer fee, but he beat a legal challenge that tried to force his return to his Russian team. The lawsuit claimed that Zherdev was a deserter because he still had military obligations in Russia.

The intrigue surrounding Malkin conjures up memories of communist bloc players defecting from behind what was known as the Iron Curtain.

"He could be the last Russian defector," Malamud said of Malkin.

The perplexities of Malkin's case involve the Russian Ice Hockey Federation's refusal to sign a player transfer agreement July 31. All of the other major hockey-playing countries abide by an agreement in which leagues are paid a fee of $200,000 if one of their players goes to the NHL.

The fee is a sticking point in Russia, given that Malkin could earn millions of dollars if he succeeds in the NHL.

"In soccer, a fee for a player of Malkin's caliber would be into tens of millions of dollars," Velichkin told Reuters. "He is a franchise player and we won't be satisfied with anything less."

He blamed player agents and the NHL for picking off Russia's best talent.

"They all like to talk about democracy, the American way, and then they shamelessly steal our best players. This is pure sports terrorism," Velichkin said. "Don't forget, Malkin is a young kid. He is still very naive, and it was easy for them to get into his head all that stuff about the American dream and how great the NHL is.

"The Pittsburgh owners are trying hard to sell the club, and the price would be totally different if they had Malkin. But you can't just take our best players and expect to get away with it."

Taking his passport and his wardrobe, Malkin bolted his team without saying a word to officials, coaches or his teammates.

According to those familiar with his contract in Magnitogorsk, Malkin's parents were entitled to a spacious apartment and other amenities. Those would be forfeited if he has defected to the United States.