Kapanen has been red-hot for the Penguins, as he now has four goals and three assists in his last five games after a multi-point effort in Pittsburgh's previous game, a 5-1 win over the Rangers on Sunday.
Dating back to Feb. 23 against Washington, Kapanen now has 10 points (5G-5A) in his last nine games. That was the first game following his benching for the majority of the third period on Feb. 20 against the Islanders, and he truly couldn't have bounced back any better.
"I give Kappy a lot of credit, because I think he's responded the right way," Sullivan said. "He's really making a concerted effort here to play the game a certain way and when he does, in our estimation, he can be an impact player for us."
After that night, Sullivan sat down with Kapanen. He told him that he's a good kid, a terrific player and they're excited about what he can bring to the team with his speed and his skill - but that he needed to focus on the details and the process, tightening up his play away from the puck and staying involved and engaged in all facets of the game.
That's something that Kapanen has been cognizant of, and admitted as much when he first rejoined the team after they acquired him from Toronto back in August - saying he was more of a one-dimensional player when the Penguins originally drafted him in the first round (22nd overall) back in 2014, but that he'd been working hard to become more well-rounded. But as a young kid who still has growing and developing to do while also getting adjusted to a new team, that's going to be a work in progress.
"It was a nice little sitdown with Mike to just talk about certain areas that I need to be better in and help the team," Kapanen said. "It's not always about offense. It's taking care of business down low and in our own zone, and that translates to the rest of my game."
Kapanen also credited his teammates for putting him in a position to make plays and score goals. While the Penguins initially penciled him in with Sidney Crosby, Kapanen has since established chemistry on a line with the team's other franchise center.
"I played with him earlier on in the year, but I feel like when you play with new guys, it always takes some time to kind of know where he is and kind of mesh together," Kapanen said of Malkin. "So I think lately we've been finding each other, and we've been playing better."
Typically, wingers that thrive with Crosby and/or Malkin bring plenty of speed that can open up plenty of ice for them, and that's exactly what Kapanen has been doing to help him be successful there.
"Geno's a really dangerous player off the rush," Sullivan said. "He sees the ice so well, and he commands so much attention with Kappy's speed. Kappy can open up the ice for him and Geno can get the puck to Kappy with the speed that he has, so they've had some chemistry. We really liked it when we put them together, they've had some good games, so we're certainly encouraged by that."
And they're encouraged by how Kapanen's confidence continues to grow as he continues to take strides in the right direction.
"This is not an easy game, and every player goes through ups and downs, but we're real excited about the progress he's made," Sullivan said.
