That rare combination, coupled with great strength, helps him win board battles and keep the puck down the opponent's end.
"I use my speed to get to the puck first. Obviously, when you get to the puck first, you have a huge advantage," he said recently. "You don't have to worry about muscling the other guy off the puck, because you already have it."
The 6-foot-2, 182-pound Simmonds is a slender sort, but he plays bigger than his size. Much bigger.
Over the years, many Flyers have set up an office in front of the opponent's net, including Gary Dornhoefer (6-1, 190), Tim Kerr (6-3, 230 ), and Mike Knuble (6-3, 229), just to name a few.
All are beefier than Simmonds. Pound for pound, however, Simmonds is their equal.
"Simmer is a lanky guy who is very, very strong," defenseman Braydon Coburn said. "The first time I went up against him in practice, I was really surprised at how well he used his leverage and his reach. He's got a lot of strength, which at first may be a bit of a surprise."
Simmonds, acquired from Los Angeles last June with Brayden Schenn and a No. 2 2012 draft pick for Mike Richards, has always been a player who does little things that don't show up on the stat sheets - such as keeping a cycle alive with his relentless work along the boards, or screening a goalie while battling a defenseman out front.
In addition, he has become a dependable scorer and is on his way to a career season.
Simmonds has equaled a career high with 16 goals - two more than he produced for the Kings in the entire 2010-11 season.
"He's a spark plug for us, a grinder, and he kind of does everything," Coburn said. "He goes to those tough areas and scores goals. He knows what his role is."
Simmonds, 23, grew up outside Toronto. He says he feels more at home on the East Coast than he did in Los Angeles.
