Wild Add Depth to Their Defense With Olli Määttä Addition

The Minnesota Wild made some changes this past offseason, with more of it being players leaving than players coming, but they made some strong acquisitions. They added a couple of players to their forward depth, like Blake Coleman and Maxim Shabanov; they also added to their defense. While they lost Jake Middleton and several draft picks in their trade to the Calgary Flames that brought Coleman to the Wild, it also included defenseman Olli Määttä.

He’s not as flashy as Quinn Hughes or Brock Faber, but that’s the reason the Wild picked him up: to be a part of their depth defense. They have defensemen who can score, and any points from Määttä will be a bonus, but his defensive skills and blocked shots are what the team needs. In this article we’ll look at how he’s felt about training camp, what he’s bringing to the team, and where he’ll fit now that he’s had time to play with his teammates. 

Määttä Likes Shorter Camp

Before the recent switch from six preseason games to four, and 82 regular season games to 84, training camp lasted a bit longer than it currently does. It used to run closer to three weeks, and now it’s down to around two, and the players have seemed to enjoy having a shorter camp so far, including Määttä. The biggest thing that’s been noticed with the shorter camp is how intense everyone is playing right away with fewer days compared to a slower start with more days. 

“Yeah, absolutely, I think the shorter camp’s actually very good. There’s not those days that you feel like you just can’t wait to get the actual season to start. I think this is like it feels like you’re in a little bit of a rush, but you also, you don’t want to waste a day. So, you almost feel it, that guys are really into it, they understand the importance of all these practices that we only have two hours a day about at the rink, and that’s how important it is to put your best effort in and try to get on the same page,” Määttä said to the media after his practice session on day two of training camp when asked about the shorter camp. 

“Yeah, I think hockey is pretty similar at the end of the day it’s not like football where there’s a whole playbook a lot of the same principles apply, it doesn’t matter where you play but the nuane is that every team plays a little differently, I think it doesn’t take a long time it’s enough time to definitely pick up on that and then you build on it day after day, I think the best way to do it, is like that, you go play and then you think about it later and fix it for the next day and do it again and instead of just trying to read a textbook or something,” Määttä continued to the media in the same interview when asked about how easy the structure is to pick up. 

Määttä’s Defense Crucial in Two Ways

Obviously, the Wild brought Määttä in because they like his defensive game; he’s a solid player who’s reliable and can be counted on to block shots. He doesn’t score a lot of points, but with Brock Faber and Quinn Hughes on the top pair, it’s not a deal breaker that he doesn’t produce a lot of points. 

However, another part of his defensive game that is going to be crucial to the Wild is his part on the penalty kill. Of course, they have Faber and Jonas Brodin as some of their top penalty killers, but they’re going to need more than just their top players to contribute. They’ve found ways to kill penalties, but they can never do so consistently; hopefully, bringing in players like Määttä and his teammate, Blake Coleman, will help find a way to fix the issues. 

“There’s different ways of playing it. I don’t think there’s one right way; there’s a lot of- you look at top teams, they don’t play the same way. I think the biggest thing is getting on the same page like what it is because you got four guys you gotta give up something and then knowing what you’re going to give up, goalie knows what’s your weak point…if something comes up, I think that’s the thing, it’s like sometimes when you’re not quite sure the hesitation comes in, and then all the sudden there’s time and space for the power play to make plays, I think the power plays nowadays are very good, so much skill so as a penalty kill unit you’re trying to eliminate that and that comes with you can’t hesitate, you’re almost attacking the power play nowadays,” Määttä said to the media later in the same interview when asked about the penalty kill. 

Määttä Fits With Bogosian

There are still things to work out, but so far, Määttä has fit in well with Zach Bogosian. The other pairings were in place last season and will likely stay that way into the beginning of this season. It’s safe to say Faber and Hughes will be together, and it’s likely that Jared Spurgeon and Jonas Brodin will stay together, which leaves Bogosian with Määttä unless they decide to split up Spurgeon and Brodin and try them with Määttä and Bogosian. 

That third pair is typically the more solid defensive-minded pair, and that’s exactly the hope with Määttä and Bogosian. They’re the pair that will bring more defense with blocked shots and just keeping the puck away from their goaltender. While it’s still early, this is likely the pairing that will start the season, and it’ll be interesting to see how it all unfolds. 

“I think we think of the game the same, though; he’s very good. All these little plays that you don’t quite see when you don’t play with somebody, you just kind of see him four times a year or so and now you…get a chance to play…a couple times in the scrimmages, like you see these little things what he does well, it’s no surprise that he’s been in the league for so long and I think we think of the game the same way and I think that’ll help us,” Määttä replied to the media during his interview on the second day of training camp when asked about working with Bogosian. 

Määttä is already fitting in quite well, and hopefully it can only get better from here. He’s expected to help with both regular defensive responsibilities and the penalty kill that the Wild really need to find a way to stabilize this season. He may be part of the spark the team needs to get over the hump and have a long run in the postseason.