PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Pittsburgh Penguins will have to try to keep their playoff push going without franchise icons Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.

Coach Dan Muse says both players are “day to day” with injuries and will sit out Saturday’s game against Dallas.

Crosby sustained a lower-body injury in the first period of a 4-3 shootout victory in Ottawa on Thursday. The 38-year-old Crosby missed about a month recently after suffering a lower-body injury while playing for Team Canada at the Milan Cortina Olympics.

Malkin will miss a third straight contest while dealing with an upper-body injury that came to light following a loss to Carolina on March 22.

Pittsburgh entered Saturday in second place in the Metropolitan Division standings with a narrow one-point lead over both Columbus and the New York Islanders with 10 games remaining.

The injuries come during a very busy stretch for the Penguins, who play at the Islanders on Monday, then host the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday. Pittsburgh is trying to return to the postseason for the first time since 2022.

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