Pittsburgh Penguins’ Olli Maatta Likely Done For The Season
By Larry Snyder
The news on Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Olli Maatta‘s shoulder is not good, and it is being reported that he will likely miss the remainder of the season.
The situation has been recounted by Jason Mackey of the Tribune Review, Dave Molinari of the Post-Gazette and Mark Madden on 105.9 The X.
The 6-foot-2, 206-pound blueliner had a labrum tear repaired in May 2014. He re-injured his shoulder on Saturday, Dec. 6 against the Ottawa Senators, and has not responded satisfactorily to his rehabilitation efforts.
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In the next few days, Matta’s doctors will make a decision on whether the 20-year-old will have to undergo a second surgery.
The native of Jyvaskyla, Finland, who is in his second season, has missed time to have a cancerous tumor removed from his thyroid. He was also one of five Pens players to contract the mumps.
The former first round draft pick of the Penguins at the 2012 NHL Entry Draft has one goal and eight assists for nine points in 20 games this season. He also had 27 shots, and 10 penalty minutes.
Maatta is under a entry-level contract for 2015-16, but becomes a restricted free agent at the end of that season.
Up Next: The Black and Gold are back at CONSOL Energy Center on Tuesday, Jan. 13 to take on the Minnesota Wild (18-18-5, 41 points). The puck is set to drop at 7 p.m. and the game will be broadcast locally on ROOT Sports Pittsburgh and nationally on the NBC Sports Network.
From The Clipboard: Pittsburgh re-assigned Derrick Pouliot on Monday to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League. The 6-foot, 208-pound defenseman scored his first goal in the National Hockey League in his debut on Saturday, Dec. 20 against the Florida Panthers.