Confidence key to Määttä's improvement

CRANBERRY TOWNSHIP, Pa. — Olli Määttä rediscovered his confidence by taking a basic approach.

"I just had to keep it simple," Määttä said after practice Tuesday at Lemieux Sports Complex.

After recording only two points in the first 23 games this season, Määttä is back to being a playmaker on the blue line — recording an assist in back-to-back games — and has bolstered the defense during the Penguins' dominance since Dec. 1.



"It’s one of those confidence things," Määttä, who is a plus-4 since Dec. 1, said with a grin. "When things aren’t going well and you aren’t confident, that’s a big part of your game. The game is so fast nowadays that you can’t lose focus or confidence at all. You need those instincts."

Early this season, players and coaches could sense Määttä was hesitating to make quick decisions, and it often led to errant passes and turnovers. It was even more frustrating for him since he was finally healthy after playing just 87 regular-season games the previous two seasons.

Määttä, who is only 22 years old, underwent shoulder surgeries in 2014 and 2015, and he missed two weeks in 2014 after having a cancerous tumor removed from his thyroid.

He's not quite sure what made his confidence waver this time. Maybe it was his minus-2 against the Capitals in the season opener, or it could have been something as simple as a bad practice. When frustration began to mount in late November, Määttä knew it was time to meet with the Penguins' coaching staff.

That's when Mike Sullivan stressed to Määttä that simplicity was the answer.

"When Olli keeps the game simple and takes what the game gives him, I think he’s really good," Sullivan said. "His biggest asset, I think, is his hockey sense. He sees the ice really well. He is a positionally sound player, and he’s a good passer. ... When he’s doing those things I think it builds confidence, and he feeds off his confidence."

Sullivan urged Määttä to make the safe pass instead of the daring one and to always remind himself that hockey is a simple game.

Määttä discovered the answer at the perfect time for the Penguins. With Kris Letang, Trevor Daley and Brian Dumoulin missing a combined 15 games because of injuries during the past month, Määttä was excellent in December as the Penguins lost just once in regulation. Sullivan relied on Määttä to kill penalties, and it was his yeoman's work in those situations that impressed Sidney Crosby:



Since Dec. 1, Määttä is second among Penguins defensemen in time on the penalty-kill, and he's brought an edge to his game with 29 hits and 27 blocked shots in 14 games. His skating has improved, and he's back to being a reliable puck-moving defenseman.

Confidence is a basic necessity for any athlete, but Steve Oleksy said some players rely on it more than others. Määtta is one of them.

"You always tend to play better when you can play with confidence," said, Oleksy, who was paired with Määtta on Sunday. "As he’s gotten more involved and gotten back in his groove a little bit, he’s starting to get that confidence and playing with it. ... He had a couple of nice plays on Sunday. Sometimes it takes a couple plays like that to really get you going, and I think we’re going to see that."

When an illness forced Määttä to miss two games after the short Christmas break, Määttä feared he'd lose the momentum he was building. Injuries and illness had that affect in the past but not this time. He's stuck to a 'simple' regimen of being one of the last players off the ice after practice, watching film regularly and working with both Jacques Martin and Sergei Gonchar.

It showed in the Penguins' 6-2 win over the Lightning last Sunday. Määttä left his spot on the left point to collect a rebound near the left faceoff circle, skated below the goal line and fired a centering pass to Chris Kunitz, who directed it in for a key third-period goal. The confidence is back, and Määttä is determined to never lose it again.

"It can still be better," Määttä said. "I know I’m better, which is a good thing. I’m pretty happy. I do see that it’s gotten better. I'm just not there yet."

SECONDARY ASSISTS

• An illness continues to wreak havoc on the Penguins. Letang and Chad Ruhwedel did not practice Tuesday. Ruhwedel missed for a second consecutive day, but Letang, who was a full participant Monday, is the latest to catch whatever bug is being passed around.

Sullivan said the coaching staff is "hopeful" that Letang will play Wednesday against the Capitals, and his status will be determined over the next 24 hours.

"Tanger was sick today," Sullivan said. "Chad is feeling better, but he's in recovery mode. He's trying to get fluids in him. It will be a little bit of a process with him. I think it might have hit him worse than some of the other guys."

Phil Kessel and Daley were back after missing Monday because of an illness.

• The Penguins are traveling to the nation's capital Wednesday. The last time the two teams met on Nov. 16, Alex Ovechkin continued his success against the Penguins by scoring in the Capitals' 7-1 win. Ovechkin has 47 points in 46 career games against the Penguins, so what makes him so deadly?