A little more offense from Jake Guentzel could go a long way for the Pittsburgh Penguins in the final round.

The rookie has enjoyed a stellar first playoffs this spring, for the most part, sharing the league lead with nine goals and ranking fourth on his team with 16 points.

However, despite his strong stats, Guentzel's production took a dip during the Eastern Conference Final as the Ottawa Senators limited the 22-year-old to just two assists in seven games.

In fact, Guentzel hasn't found the back of the net since Game 6 against the Washington Capitals, having tallied just three assists over his last eight games.

Amid the slump, head coach Mike Sullivan insisted Guentzel is contributing in other ways.

"I think Jake’s game has been really good. He didn’t score in that series, but I think there’s more to his game than just that," Sullivan said Sunday after practice. "He’s played some heavy minutes for us since he’s joined our team, in particular, in this playoff race.

"So I think as our team starts to get healthy here, we’re able to lean on the balance of the group, which I think will serve Jake, in particular, really well. He’s a very good player. I think he helps us win even on nights when he doesn’t score because he has a complete skill set. He’s pretty sound defensively. He has awareness away from the puck. He’s a playmaker. He has a high hockey IQ. He’s a competitive guy."

It's for these reasons that Sullivan never wavered on Guentzel's ice time during the last round. Despite his dip in production, Guentzel still played an average of 17:53 a night, fourth most among Penguins forwards behind only Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Phil Kessel

"There’s a lot of aspects of his game other than just his ability to score goals that help our team win," Sullivan added.

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