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Penguins coach to Crosby, Malkin: ‘Play the right way’

Pittsburgh Penguins v New York Islanders

UNIONDALE, NY - JANUARY 16: Pittsburgh Penguins stars Evgeni Malkin #71 and Sidney Crosby #87 pause prior to their game against against the New York Islanders at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum on January 16, 2015 in Uniondale, New York. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

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No doubt about it, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin have been struggling to score lately.

Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan recognizes that, although he also believes that the high-end scorers still make an impact on playoff contests, even when they’re not generating goals and assists.

That said, those goals and assists sure are nice.

So, how do you get Crosby and Malkin back to scoring against the Tampa Bay Lightning after their offense dried up?

Some want the Penguins to put that dynamic duo together ...

... But either way, Sullivan’s message is simple enough. It seems to go along the lines of “Keep plugging away.”

“When they play the game the right way, they’re very difficult to play against,” Sullivan said. “They help us on both sides of the puck. They’re talented enough players that we think they’ll score for us. That’s really been our message to those guys.”

Sullivan didn’t just have messages for No. 71 and No. 87. He also expects more from the likes of Olli Maatta.

The Penguins get a chance to get back on track in Pittsburgh against the Bolts in Game 2.