The loss in New York Thursday night wasn't so troubling. You didn't really think the Penguins were going to go 16-0 on their way to the Stanley Cup, did you? The Rangers are a good team. They were a desperate team the other night, playing at home. It happens.

That the Penguins' high-powered goal scorers couldn't solve goalie Henrik Lundqvist also wasn't so upsetting. Lundqvist has a $41.25 million contract. He's expected to throw shutouts now and then. It's not as if the Penguins didn't get good chances in the 3-0 loss. Many days, those shots by Evgeni Malkin, Marian Hossa and Ryan Malone are going to be goals. Maybe today at Mellon Arena in Game 5.

No, the only worrisome aspect of the loss was that Sidney Crosby and Malkin acted like immature kids at the end.

Which, they still are, if you really think about it.

Crosby took a foolish roughing penalty late in the game when he overreacted to a clean hit on Hossa by Rangers defenseman Dan Girardi. That's not how he best can help the Penguins. "I can't score a goal in the penalty box, if that's what you mean," Crosby said yesterday, rather sarcastically.

Malkin's behavior was more boorish. Sure, he had to be embarrassed when Lundqvist stopped him on one of the lamest penalty shots in NHL playoff history. But did he have to take it out on Rangers defenseman Paul Mara, whom he slew-footed late in the game? "A classless act by a superstar," Mara called it. You don't agree? Please. You'd be screaming bloody murder if Mara had done it to Malkin.

It's almost certain that these were one-time acts by Crosby, 20, and Malkin, 21, from the frustration caused by the impenetrable Lundqvist. Neither showed all season that he is incapable of standing up to pressure. But what if, on the odd chance, this was a fair indication of how Crosby and Malkin are going to react to a little playoff adversity? Then the Penguins are in a lot more trouble than they should be after their first loss of the postseason.

You know what the Rangers are counting on, don't you?

They're still looking at an enormous mountain to climb, down 3-1 in the series.

Of course, they're going to reach for any lifeline from Crosby and Malkin.

"Maybe a bit of a dent in the armor," Rangers coach Tom Renney said of the impact of his team's Game 4 win.

The other perspective came yesterday from Crosby and Penguins coach Michel Therrien.

Asked if the Rangers' win enabled them to creep inside the Penguins' heads -- especially his and Malkin's -- the normally voluble Crosby had a terse one-word answer: "No."

Asked the same question, Therrien told the media scrum, "I've got only one answer: You'll see tomorrow."

Later, in his Southpointe Iceoplex office, Therrien expanded.

"Sid is going to have a great game tomorrow. He's that type of player. He's our captain and he's going to lead our team."

And Malkin?

"He's become a good leader, too. He's going to have a good game ...

"Young guys have to play with that emotion in the playoffs. Those guys aren't 32 or 33. Everything is brand new to them. That's why they can't lose that emotion. They just have to keep their focus."

It's a safe bet Therrien -- a good communicator, especially with his star players -- reminded Crosby and Malkin of just that. Or he'll do it today before the game.

Not that Crosby will be repentant.

"You regret things, but I don't regret that," he said of his roughing penalty. "I'm not going to apologize for standing up for a teammate. I wouldn't change a thing."

Memo to Therrien:

Please have that sit-down with Sid.

But, hey, who knows? Maybe all this will work to the Penguins' benefit.

Malkin has been their best player not named Marc-Andre Fleury in the playoffs. By now, he will have realized he doesn't need a slew-foot to do damage to the Rangers. He tortured them in the first three games. It wasn't so surprising that he missed on that awful penalty-shot try. For whatever reason, that's not a strong part of his game, which explains why Therrien used Erik Christensen or Jarkko Ruutu in his place during shootouts in the regular season. What was surprising was that Lundqvist kept Malkin off the scoresheet in Game 4. That isn't likely to happen two games in a row.

Certainly, Crosby will play with passion today. It's not just the criticism for that penalty. He has a lot of pride and can't enjoy the talk that Malkin has surpassed him -- at least in these playoffs -- as the world's best player. It's to the point that some are wondering if his ankle is bothering him, which is ridiculous. It's not as if he has been a bum.

He is averaging 1.5 points per playoff game, a number that will grow substantially if his linemate, Hossa, starts converting his scoring chances.

But Crosby knows even more is expected of him.

"Whenever Sid is challenged," Therrien said, "he responds."

That's why Therrien is promising a big game today for Crosby.

I'm trusting the coach's judgment on this one.

If it does go down like that this afternoon and Crosby leads the way as the Penguins put the Rangers out of their misery, no one will remember that nonsense at the end of Game 4.

Crosby penalty?

What Crosby penalty?

What Malkin slew-foot?