Sidney Crosby was superb for the Penguins in the first two games, getting two assists, including one on Conor Sheary's overtime winner in Game 2. But Evgeni Malkin has no points in the series and has one goal in his past 14 games.
There's little talk about Malkin's struggles because others such as Phil Kessel, Bryan Rust, Nick Bonino and Sheary have been scoring big goals. So far, the Sharks' depth players haven't picked up the slack in the same way, so what Pavelski and Thornton aren't doing stands out more.
"In general, they're always going to have that," Sharks defenseman Paul Martin said. "I don't know if Sid and [Malkin] have any points. I think it's just one of those things it gets magnified a bit [in the playoffs], but if anyone puts pressure on them, it's themselves to help the team and produce and be effective. They want more, too. They expect more of themselves, which we all do, at this point of the series."
Although Patrick Marleau has faced similar critiques during his 18 seasons with the Sharks, he at least scored a goal in Game 1. Couture has assisted on two of the Sharks' three goals in the series, so it's hard to point the finger of blame at him, but he probably needs to elevate his game as well.