Veteran NHL center signs in Czech league

Back in May, former NHL center Dominik Simon terminated his contract with Sparta Praha a year early, fueling speculation that he could be looking to return to North America. However, that won’t be the case as Ceske Budejovice of the Extraliga announced Saturday that they’ve inked Simon to a one-year contract.

The 29-year-old was an NHL regular for most of the 2021-22 campaign, playing in 72 games between Anaheim and Pittsburgh and had a PTO offer from the Penguins last summer to try to push for a roster spot. However, he decided to return overseas and play at home, a decision that made plenty of sense in theory as he looked to show that he could still be a factor offensively.

Unfortunately for Simon, things didn’t go as planned. Injuries cost him the final few months of the season, and when he was in the lineup, he struggled considerably, recording just two goals and one assist, which isn’t what he or Sparta Praha were hoping for. Now, he’ll hope that this successful tryout with Ceske Budejovice (he played four preseason games on a PTO) will help get him back on track and perhaps back onto the NHL radar in 2024-25 to try to add to his 256 career appearances.