The Reason Sullivan Has Simon on Crosby’s Line is Simple

Penguins coach Mike Sullivan has been trying to force the square Dominik Simon peg into a round hole and it has a few of the Penguins faithful up in arms.

First off, Dominik Simon who is playing in playing in his first full season in the NHL is not as bad as people would have you think.  The Pens are paying $750 thousand a year for a guy who has 7 goals and 24 points in 57 games. He is a young versatile player who is in the positive plus minus column and in a pinch could play just about anywhere in the lineup.

There is a lot in that last sentence.  In a pinch.  Mike Sullivan plugged Jared McCann into Crosby’s line and the results were amazing.  So why would Sullivan go back to Simon if he wasn’t in a pinch to do so?   The answer is in another part of the sentence above.

Simon can play just about anywhere in the lineup.  It is where he can’t play is the problem.  Bryan Rust has also looked fantastic as the third wheel on Crosby’s line and Sullivan kept pulling him to try to fit the square Simon peg in.  It is all because McCann and Rust are two of the Penguins best penalty killers and Simon hasn’t played a minute of penalty kill.

At this point I know what your thinking.  Krundle is off his rocker.

Work with me here.  Let’s say the Penguins are playing a team like Columbus where there are bound to be a ton of penalties for each team.  Crosby is playing first power play, Guentzel is playing second, McCann or Rust are killing penalties.

So after each power play Crosby has to sit two shifts until Guentzel is ready and after each penalty kill Crosby has to sit two shifts waiting for McCann or Rust to be ready.  That is a lot of sitting for your #1 star.

So when the Penguins play games that Sullivan believes there will be a lot of penalties, he really wants that square Dominik Simon peg to fit into that round hole so that he can play Crosby more.

My personal opinion is it would be easier just to teach Dominik Simon to kill penalties.