Goal celebrations have been a rare occurrence for Pittsburgh during the Stanley Cup final. (Gene J. Puskar/Associated Press)

If ever the sports cliché "nothing to lose" applied, it would be for the Pittsburgh Penguins heading into Game 5 of the Stanley Cup final.

Trailing the series 3-1, Pittsburgh will try and prolong their quest for the Cup at Joe Louis Arena on Monday, the building where they couldn't even muster a goal on Detroit goaltender Chris Osgood in either of the first two games in the series.

No player on the Penguins has embodied the club's struggles more than talented forward Evgeni Malkin. Malkin has no points and a minus-three rating in the series. He has just two points in the last eight games after racking up 17 in the first 10 playoff contests.

Pittsburgh coach Michel Therrien defended the talented sophomore on Sunday.

"Things are not going the way that he'd like to or we'd like to as well, but in the meantime, he's working hard, and he's trying," said Therrien. "And sometimes it doesn't always go the way you'd like it to go, but the only thing he's got to do is keep focusing and working hard.

Some hockey observers have speculated as to whether Malkin was injured in the team's Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Philadelphia Flyers. It could also be that he is worn out after playing about twice as many games as he would have in a season while developing his game in Russia.

Malkin has played in all 100 of Pittsburgh's regular season and playoff games. Nevertheless, he finished with 65 seconds more ice time during Game 4 than captain Sidney Crosby, who has accounted for two of the team's four goals in the series.

Therrien on Sunday had a ready explanation for that result.

"Malkin played a little bit more on the power play," said Therrien. "The biggest reason is because he's playing the point. You don't have to spend more energy probably than Sid as a forward has to work down low battling, all that type of stuff. So that's a little bit the difference."

While Malkin has sometimes appeared to be trying to do to much with the puck in the offensive zone, there have been other times, particularly in the neutral zone, where he has been lackadaisical.

But Marian Hossa and Jordan Staal also stuck up for their struggling teammate, and with good reason.

With only three Penguins on the scoresheet so far, just about any player in the Pittsburgh locker room who would choose to point a finger of blame would likely have three more directed back at themselves, as the saying goes.

Staal has the exact same stat line as Malkin for the series, while linemate Petr Sykora has no points and is a minus-two. Other regular offensive contributors like Ryan Malone and defenceman Ryan Whitney have also been rendered largely ineffective by the Red Wings.

As a result, the Penguins are just 2-for-17 on the power play during the series. While a lot of focus has rightly centred on the team's unsuccessful five-on-three advantage for 86 seconds in the final period, Pittsburgh also squandered a pair of opportunities late in the first period to take a lead heading into the second.

Hossa, the only rival to Crosby as Pittsburgh's best skater in the series, scored on the team's first power play just over two minutes into the game.

"We got so many young guys, and we sometimes try so many things really well and squeezing the sticks really hard," Hossa said on Sunday. "We just have to relax and play with more confidence on the power play and I think we'll be fine.

"We had great power plays. And right now I think we tried to do everything so quick. And obviously, they're doing a good job. We have to give them credit. But we have to be clearly more patient and find a low-risk option and maybe shoot the puck more with the traffic."

Getting more shots on net is important. Despite their offensive prowess, Pittsburgh only ranked 23rd in the NHL in shots during the regular season, averaging just under 28 shots per game. They've averaged just 22 per game against Detroit's stifling checking, topping out so far at 24 in Game 3, the only meeting they've won.

Staal, meanwhile, said on Sunday he would definitely play in Game 5 despite taking a shot to the skate in the previous contest.

"When I took off my skate it started swelling up a bit, but it feels fine today," he said.

The Penguins are 4-4 on the road this season. If necessary, Game 6 will take place Wednesday in Pittsburgh.