This is the 22nd installment in a series of profiles of members of the Penguins' major-league roster, as listed alphabetically on the team's website. There will be one each weekday until all players have been addressed.
DOMINIK SIMON
Age: 25
Size: 5 foot 11, 190 pounds
Position: Right wing
Acquired: Fifth-round draft choice, 2015
Salary-cap hit: $750,000 through 2019-20
2018-19 NHL stats: Eight goals, 20 assists in 71 games
How he fits: That will be determined during training camp, when Simon will be challenged for the spot he held on the No. 1 line for a good chunk of last season.
Shortcomings: Simon doesn't score goals with anything close to the regularity expected of a winger who works alongside Sidney Crosby. He converted just eight of 121 shots in 2018-19, a meager success rate of 6.6 percent.
Strengths: With the obvious exception of his failure to consistently capitalize on scoring chances, Simon has a solid overall game that complements top-six linemates. He is an asset in the puck-possession game the Penguins like to play and has shown some playmaking ability.
Hidden variable: Simon showed something of a scoring touch during his first season in North America, 2015-16, when he had 25 goals in 68 games with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. If that was a harbinger, rather than an aberration, his value to the Penguins could spike.
2019-20 expectations: Regardless of where Simon is deployed, he will be counted on to be at least a little more opportunistic when given a scoring chance, while continuing to play a solid, details-oriented game.
The big questions: Can Simon fend off the contenders for his place alongside Crosby and Jake Guentzel during training camp? And if he does, will Simon threaten to supplant Jack Johnson as the most polarizing figure on the roster?
All profiles to date can be found here.
