Christmas came early for Rickard Rakell.

By about two days.

In a 5-4 overtime road loss to the Ottawa Senators on Saturday, the Pittsburgh Penguins forward scored his first goal of the season.

It was a nice gift for the holidays, though he probably would have preferred to have registered some offense going back to Oct. 10, the start of the season (and Arbor Day in Poland).

As it is, Rakell followed that success with his second goal two days after Christmas in a 7-0 road win against the Islanders on Wednesday.

Each score has done quite a bit to change the tone of what has been a largely disappointing campaign for Rakell.

“I feel like I’m definitely in the right spot at the right time,” Rakell said. “I’m getting a lot of chances, and I feel like every one of them is pretty much around the net. That’s the spots where I have to try to get to. It sounds simple, but somehow these past two games, they’ve gone in for me. I’ve gotten the same types of looks I feel like all season long. But definitely, just a better feeling in my body. A little bit more confident. Trying to make things happen when I have the puck.”

Not much happened when Rakell did have the puck through the first six-plus weeks of the season.

In 17 games over that span, he was limited to four assists despite largely playing on the second line and getting occasional shifts with the first power-play unit.

The next 12 contests were even worse on account of his being sidelined with a suspected right shoulder ailment that landed him on long-term injured reserve.

Back in the lineup by Dec. 18, Rakell has been stationed on the right wing of the top line next to Sidney Crosby at center and Jake Guentzel on the left wing and has produced four points (two goals, two assists) in four games.

Good work if you can get it.

“They’re so good at finding those scoring areas around the net,” Rakell said of his linemates. “The other teams focus so much on them, I try to find open space in the offensive zone.”

Each of Rakell’s goals has largely come from the same geography on the ice, the left side of the crease. But they’ve been achieved through highly different means.

Against the Senators, Rakell scored off a two-on-one rush with Crosby that involved some dynamic passing.

And versus the Islanders, Rakell scored the opening goal by chopping in an ugly rebound.

“Goal-scorers have the ability to score goals different ways,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. “(Rakell) has shown an ability to do that. When you look at the types of goals he scored last year for us, they happened different ways. He has the skill to create some dynamic goals off the rush, for example. He has a really good shot. He’s got a deceptive release. But he also has the ability to score, as we call them, blue-paint goals, where they’re a foot and a half from the net. Just banging in a rebound or just being in that area for deflection opportunities.

“He’s a talented guy that I think has the diversity in his game to score goals in different ways, and he’s playing with some guys that have the same ability.”

That ability has been evident throughout Rakell’s 12-year career. An All-Star in 2017-18, Rakell has a pair of 30-goal seasons on his resume and came close last season, his first full campaign as a member of the Penguins.

In 82 games, he had 28 goals and 60 points.

His season-opening slump wasn’t exactly a new experience. But it certainly weighed on him.

“I never had one like for the start of a season,” Rakell said. “But obviously, I’ve gone through slumps kind of like that before. It’s tough. You’ve just got to find a way to get through it. When you do, you’ve just to ride the wave.”

Rakell’s recent success has landed him back on the top power-play unit for the time being. During Wednesday’s game, he manned the slot (or “bumper”) with that squad and continued in that capacity during practice Thursday in Cranberry.

He views his role on the top power-play unit in a similar fashion to his spot on the top line.

“Just be an option for them and just be close to the net,” Rakell said. “Same there. The focus is probably going to be on the other guys. Not being too static, move around and find the open space. Just trust my instincts.”

Rakell’s natural ability has allowed him to carve out a role as a legitimate top-six winger in the NHL for more than a decade. His recent results have validated that postulate.

“He’s a guy that we can rely on from an offensive production standpoint,” Sullivan said. “If we’re going to get where we ultimately want to go, he needs to be a part of that. We’ve liked what we’ve seen here this last little while. (Rakell), since he’s come back off his injury, has gained some traction. We were hoping he could hit the reset button there and just from a mindset standpoint, go into the games with a fresh start. He’s done that. He’s done a great job from that regard. And he’s getting rewarded. Hopefully, he can build on it.”

Rakell didn’t enter his 12th season with any designs on a set number of goals or points or other tabulations he was pursuing.

He just wants this campaign to be better than the 11 that preceded it.

“I always go into the season and just try to beat the best season that I’ve ever had,” Rakell said. “I’m competing against myself. That was the mindset going into this season. It’s still my mindset.

“When I’m playing well, I’m playing my best.”