As we hit the all-star break, it’s a good time to have a hard look at your squad and determine what changes you need to make to your squad to help make that final push. Here are a few new faces on the scene that could provide depth help for that second half stretch.

Dominik Simon – PIT

The latest in a long line of Pittsburgh prospects to audition for the plum role of Sidney Crosby’s line mate is Dominik Simon. The Czech product put himself on NHL radars with a standout 2015 World Championship posting six points in 10 games and was subsequently picked in the fifth round in 2015 as an over-ager, just two months shy of his 21^st birthday. He’s proceeded to progress fairly rapidly though the Penguins system, immediately coming over to suit up for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Simon put together near identical years in the AHL in 2015-16 and 2016-17 with 48 points and 46 points respectively. He managed to earn short NHL stints in both of the campaigns, but overall his NHL body of work is rather sparse with two assists across five contests.

In his third year in North America, Simon appears to be hitting his stride. Not only is he having his most productive AHL season by averaging 0.81 points per game, but is getting his first taste of extended NHL action and showing that he can hold his own. Recalled in early December, Simon has gone on to produce four goals and five helpers in 16 games thus far primarily riding shotgun with Sidney Crosby. Most encouraging is the fact that he is putting up these number while averaging less than 13 minutes a night. He’s starting to get the puck on net with greater frequency and the goals are starting to come in greater number with three snipes in his last two contests. It’s obviously a small sample size, but in his short time with the Pens, Simon has proven to be one of their better possession players with a CF% 58.1. It’s not as if he’s being sheltered either as his offensive zone start % clocks in at 48.46. Despite not being the biggest guy, he’s showing a willingness to throw his body around with 22 hits thus making, making him a potentially valuable multi-cat option depending on the depth of the league.

Tyler Bertuzzi – DET

The third-youngest player on the roster, Tyler Bertuzzi represents the future for the Detroit Red Wings, an aging team on the outside of the playoff picture. A former scoring star in junior, the Sudbury native put up 98 points in his final season with the Guelph Storm en route to winning a Memorial Cup. In his first pro season with Grand Rapids, Bertuzzi brought a mix of skill and sandpaper posting 30 points in 71 games and a team high 133 PIMs. In his sophomore year he toned down anger but ratcheted up the finesse slashing his PIM totals but nearly 100, down to 37, and increasing his production by 83% on a point-per-game basis by posting 37 points in 48 regular season games. He earned a seven-game stint I Detroit but was held off the scoresheet. Bertuzzi took his game to another level in the AHL playoffs with 19 points in as many games and 50 penalty minutes to boot. He helped lead the Grand Rapids Griffins to a Calder Cup title and was names AHL Playoff MVP. In 2017-18 the third-year pro has seen equal time in both the AHL and NHL, averaging nearly a point per game in the minors in 16 games. In the big show he’s seeing middle-six minutes with nearly two-thirds of his zone starts coming in the defensive end, producing two goals and seven assists in 15 games, all of them coming at even strength. But that doesn’t mean he’s strictly limited to 5-on-5 play as he’s also been getting a healthy dose of power-play time lately. Bertuzzi has been getting shots off at an increased rate over the last number of games with 20 of his 30 shots have come over the last eight contests and the points have come along with give in his past six games. A winner at every level, Bertuzzi is a hardnosed player that plays on the edge and has the grin of a 15-year veteran. He’s showing some potential as a valuable multi-cat asset.

Casey DeSmith – PIT

Do the Penguins have another Matt Murray in their midst? That may be what some people are wondering with the recent emergence of relative unknown Casey DeSmith. However, astute fantasy GMs would be aware of him because he was talked about on the fine DobberProspects podcast a little over a year ago as a player to watch. DeSmith attended the University of New Hampshire where he served as the number one tender for his first three years on campus posting excellent numbers in the process, but was dismissed from the team at the beginning of his senior year due to some legal issues. He subsequently signed a pro deal in the summer of 2015 and began his journey in the ECHL with the Wheeling Nailers. In his first and only season there, DeSmith performed third stringer duties and posted a 2.55 GAA and .915 SVS. The next year he signed a minor league deal with the Baby Pens and helped lead them to the best record in the AHL on the backs of a 2.01 GAA and .926 SVS serving as the backup to Tristan Jarry. He was named to the AHL all-rookie team and, along with Jarry, won the Harry Holmes Memorial Award, the AHL equivalent of the William Jennings trophy. Rutherford and Co. took notice and this past summer DeSmith earned his first NHL contract. He’s been give the reigns as the number one in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and has performed well, even if his number are down from last year.

The 26-year-old finally reached the summit this season as he’s getting his first taste of NHL action. He was called up on a couple of occasions earlier in the year where he played mop-up duty. Recalled once again a week and a half ago to replace Matt Murray who left the team due to the death of his father, DeSmith has been getting the starting nod on a consistent basis, starting the last four games for the Penguins and showing he can carry the mail. In Thursday’s game against the Wild he matched his worst outing of the year by giving up three goals. But in the three games prior he was nearly unbeatable facing 100 shots and turning aside 97 of them. All told he’s seen action in six games, starting four of them and has a 3-2 record to show for it to go along with a .927 SVS and 2.08 GAA. The Penguins appear content giving Desmith the backup gig having recently re-assigned Tristan Jarry to the minors. DeSmith probably isn’t the second coming of Dominik Hasek but he has excelled at every level at which he’s played and has been one of the best goalies in the AHL over the past year and a half. The UDFA is currently riding a hot streak which is sometimes all you can hope for given the fickle nature of the position in fantasy. And that alone makes him a viable commodity.

Thanks for reading! Give me a follow on Twitter @BradHPhillips. Enjoy your weekend.

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