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Olli Maatta

Metropolitan Notes: Maatta, Philly Prospects, Standings, Tavares

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While he wasn’t drafted to be a key offensive blueliner, Penguins defenseman Olli Maatta surprised many in his rookie season with 29 points in 78 games back in 2013-14.  That raised the level of expectations for him right away that he could be a legitimate two-way threat in the league.  Fast forward to today and suffice it to say, that hasn’t happened, writes Jonathan Bombulie of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.

This season, Maatta has only managed a pair of assists in 35 games, a stat line that more than a few goaltenders around the league have.  The Penguins have deployed him in a primary shutdown role which has limited his offensive opportunities but the 22 year old knows he can be better at that end of the rink:

“It’s something that should be part of my game as well, and it hasn’t been this season. It’s something I gotta pay attention to. You have to try to get better as a player as the season goes on. That’s a big thing, and I think that’s part of my game that I can be better at. I can improve.”

With Kris Letang and Trevor Daley, two of Pittsburgh’s top offensive threats from the back end, both out of the lineup, Maatta should get more of an opportunity to be a factor offensively in the coming games.

More from the Metro:

  • Philadelphia fans will be keeping a close eye on the World Junior Hockey Championships which get underway today. As Dave Isaac of the Courier-Post notes, the Flyers have an impressive nine prospects that will be representing the team.  By comparison, no other team has more than five.  Among those nine players are three netminders, Carter Hart (Canada), Felix Sandstrom (Sweden), and Matej Tomek (Slovakia).  With the uncertainty surrounding Philadelphia’s NHL goaltending situation moving forward (Steve Mason and Michal Neuvirth are both unrestricted free agents at the end of the season), it’s certainly encouraging for the Flyers to know they have several quality prospects in their junior ranks even if these goalies are still a few years away from contributing at the NHL level.
  • Newsday’s Steve Zipay wonders if there’s a chance we may see tanking of a different kind come April. As things sit in the standings, both Wild Card spots in the East are from the Metropolitan Division, creating a scenario where it could arguably be more beneficial to see a top three team drop into the first Wild Card spot and cross over to the bracket in the Atlantic Division.  There’s still more than half the season to play but if things hold up close to where they are now, it will certainly be something to keep an eye on as we hit the stretch run of the season.
  • With Casey Cizikas expected to be out through the Islanders’ five day break from January 1st to the 5th, captain John Tavares is expected to take a regular turn on the penalty kill, writes Arthur Staple, also of Newsday. Head coach Jack Capuano noted that Tavares has the hockey IQ to handle the role, even though it’s one he hasn’t played since his days in junior hockey.  It also helps that Tavares is their best faceoff threat at 52.9% and winning shorthanded draws is an area that the Islanders have struggled at this year as they’ve won just 45.4% of their faceoffs in that situation.

Eastern Conference Snapshots: Hoffman, Warsofsky, Pouliot, Weise

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Ottawa Senators winger Mike Hoffman has led the team in goal scoring in each of the last two seasons, a fact which prompted the team to sign the 26-year-old to a five-year, $20.75MM extension this summer. Even though he has totaled 56 goals since the start of the 2014-15 campaign, Hoffman is no stranger to slow starts and this season has been no exception. Despite the fact the Sens are tied for second in goals-per-game, Hoffman has yet to tally his first marker of the season. But, as Ken Warren of the Ottawa Citizen writes, it’s only a matter of time before he breaks through.

Hoffman is currently tied with Chris Kreider and Brent Burns in shots on goal with 20 and says he has been getting plenty of scoring chances.

“I’m just trying to keep a level head, I know the goals are going to come. You don’t want to hit the panic button too early. I feel like I’m getting a lot of shots, a lot of chances every game.”

Like Hoffman, head coach Guy Boucher believes the gifted winger will find his scoring touch soon enough.

“I liked a lot of his game (against Arizona). The work is always when the guy is not getting (any chances) and you can see (the confidence) go down, which is not Mike’s case.”

Goal scorers like Hoffman are prone to slumps but when the get hot they tend to score in bunches. So far Hoffman’s inability to put the puck in the net hasn’t had much of an impact on Ottawa’s on-ice fortunes as the team has won three of their first four. Once he does ratchet up his output, the Senators chances of competing for a playoff spot will only improve.

Elsewhere in the Eastern Conference:

  • The Pittsburgh Penguins blue line is a little beat up which today prompted the recall of David Warsofsky from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the AHL, according to Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. In a related move, the team placed Derrick Pouliot on IR. Pouliot has made just one appearance for the Penguins, and left that game in the second period with an undisclosed injury. It appears that whatever the injury, it could keep Pouliot out a while. In addition to Pouliot, Olli Maatta and Kris Letang are both banged up as well. Letang is considered day-to-day with an upper-body injury but as Mackey writes, he might be healthy enough to suit up Saturday.
  • Dale Weise of the Philadelphia Flyers is slated for a hearing with the NHL Department of Player Safety after his illegal check to the head of Anaheim defensman Korbinian Holzer in a game Thursday night. Weise wasn’t penalized on the play but the league wasted no time calling for the hearing. It appears it will be a phone hearing, meaning Weise won’t receive a suspension longer than five games. Weise, signed this summer as a free agent, has not yet recorded a point for the Flyers in four appearances.

Snapshots: Gudas, Maatta, Monahan, Byfuglien

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The wrist problem that caused Flyers defenseman Radko Gudas to withdraw from the Czech Republic’s entry into the World Cup of Hockey is one that lingered during last season, reports Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Inquirer.  Gudas didn’t get into specifics about the injury but noted that there was ligament damage and that a small issue could have turned into a bigger one.

Gudas believes that he is still 1-3 weeks away from the wrist being back to 100% (he is currently unable to shoot the puck) but expects to be ready to start the season.

Earlier this summer, Gudas inked a four year contract with a cap hit of $3.35MM.  He played in 76 regular season games with the Flyers, collecting 14 points while adding 116 PIMS, 304 hits, and 157 blocked shots.

[Related: Flyers Depth Chart]

Other news and notes from around the NHL:

  • Penguins defenseman Olli Maatta still has to fulfill his mandatory military obligations to Finland but has an agreement to delay that for at least another three years, tweets Sports Illustrated’s Alex Prewitt. Maatta had a challenging postseason, one where he suffered a concussion and was also a healthy scratch at times, but still picked up seven assists in 18 games.  He’s expected to be a key cog on Pittsburgh’s blueline this season.
  • Flames center Sean Monahan is expected to be ready for the start of Calgary’s training camp, writes Postmedia’s Kristen Odland. Monahan withdrew from the World Cup of Hockey earlier this month after straining his back in training.  Fresh off a seven year deal he signed in August, Monahan decided to take a pass on the tournament to make sure he’s 100% ready to start the season with the Flames.
  • Winnipeg defenseman Dustin Byfuglien is expected to play on the wing for Team USA in their final World Cup tune-up game against Finland tonight, reports Stephen Whyno of the Associated Press. Whyno adds that Brandon Dubinsky and Kyle Palmieri will be healthy scratches for the Americans.  Byfuglien is no stranger to playing the wing, seeing time there with the Jets off and on in recent years.

Around The League: Coaching Vacancies, Goalies, Hertl, Datsyuk, Maatta

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As we sit less than two weeks before the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, there are two head coaching vacancies that still need to be filled, Anaheim and Calgary.  Elliotte Friedman’s latest 30 Thoughts column expanded on some of the likely candidates for each team.  For the Ducks, Rick Bowness, former Anaheim coach Randy Carlyle, and Travis Green are under consideration while for the Flames, Glen Gulutzan and Mike Yeo have come up.  Teams generally like to head their head coaches determined before the draft so it’s expected that these vacancies will be filled in the near future.

Elsewhere around the league:

  • Bruce Garrioch discussed the potentially intriguing trade market for goaltenders in his latest Sunday column. He highlights a trio of goalies that could be of interest this offseason, Anaheim’s Frederik Andersen, Pittsburgh’s Marc-Andre Fleury, and Tampa Bay’s Ben Bishop.  Andersen is a restricted free agent this offseason while Fleury and Bishop are under contract through 2018-19 and 2016-17 respectively.  Each of those teams has a high potential young netminder that has made a case that they’re ready for a larger workload.  Given that the free agent class is relatively light between the pipes and the potential for an expansion draft as soon as 2017-18, there’s a case to be made that those teams should be investigating what the trade market is for their veterans.
  • San Jose winger Tomas Hertl will not play in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final on Sunday night. Head coach Peter DeBoer noted that he’s “getting better every day”.  Hertl has not been ruled out for a potential Game 7 on Wednesday night should the Sharks extend the series once again.
  • Detroit GM Ken Holland was scheduled to meet with Pavel Datsyuk early this week but that meeting has been delayed due to the passing of Red Wings legend Gordie Howe. Datsyuk has one year remaining on his contract with a cap hit of $7.5 million.  It has been reported that the 37 year old would like to play in Russia next year but if he does so, his cap hit will not come off Detroit’s books.
  • It won’t be a quiet offseason for Pittsburgh defenceman Olli Maatta. As soon as the Stanley Cup Final ends, he will return home to his native Finland to begin his mandatory military training which will span the next two offseasons.

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