PITTSBURGH (93.7 the Fan) Kappy is not happy.
"Terrible, thanks."
Those are the only words spoken by Kasperi Kapanen when asked about what he thinks of his play in recent games.
Kapanen's answer, while short and void of explanation, isn't incorrect at all; Kapanen has been almost completely unnoticeable since his hat trick on early November.
The hat trick occurred on a Nov. 6 game against the Minnesota Wild, and those were Kapanen's first goals of the season.
At that point, the thought was the monkey was off his back and the Finnish forward is back on track to being the team's breakout star.
In the 15 games following that game, however, it seems that the monkey is still firmly strapped to his back.
Two goals and five assists for seven points over that stretch, add on four consecutive without a single marker.
For the season Kappy has played in 25 games scoring five goals and nine assists for 14 points.
That's downright not good enough for what everyone expects him to be.
Is the word "terrible" a little harsh when discussing Kapanen's play these past few games, or all season for that matter?
No, not really.
The expectations are high, but he needs to be better, and he is well aware of that.
Despite the "terrible" play, with Jake Guentzel set to be out week-to-week with an upper-body injury, Kapanen practiced with Sidney Crosby and Evan Rodrigues on the first line.
Maybe a little jolt from Crosby and Rodrigues is exactly what Kapanen needs to get back on the right track.
