62 Days Until Opening Night At Nationwide Arena: Samuel Kňažko
Kňažko is a left-shot defenseman in a very deep pool of prospects for the Jackets. He signed his entry-level contract on June 9th, 2021, and would make his organizational debut for the Cleveland Monsters of the AHL in 2022.
He played in 50 games for the Monsters in 22-23, scoring 1 goal and totaling 21 points. His 21 points were good enough for 3rd among defensemen for the Monsters, behind star prospect David Jiricek and Jake Christiansen.
He was called up to Columbus and played in two games at the end of the 2023 season, failing to gain a point.
The scouting report on Kňažko is promising. Scouts rave about his passing skills for a defenseman. Watching him shows how he can find players down the seam and easily make passes. He’s extremely mobile and can move up the ice on an offensive rush very smoothly, and skates well when defending against a rush. Before the draft, his skating had been called “elite” by multiple scouts. He's more of an offensive defenseman and loves to QB a powerplay. With his passing skills, good shot, and good hands, it’s no surprise that he can rack up points.
He only played in 44 games last season for the Monsters. The Monster blueline, which is packed with young talent, had to be rotated in and out, limiting how much some of the guys were playing, and Kňažko was no exception. In the 44 games that he played, he scored 2 goals and totaled 12 points. He also played in two of the Monsters playoff games, getting one assist. Those two games he played didn't come until games 2 & 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals.
Kňažko has a lot of work to do to break through for the Blue Jackets, as this defensive pool is loaded. He just turned 22, so he’s still very young, but he'll be playing on another good Cleveland team that has a chance to repeat as division champs and make a deep playoff run.
As a left-shot blueliner, he'll be behind guys like Denton Mateychuk and Stanislav Svozil, so he's going to have to have a big year to get attention. If Denton Mateychuk and/or David Jiříček do make the Columbus squad out of camp, this will give Kňažko the chance he needs to make a statement, if he's going to make one. Although Jiříček is a right-shot D, that still opens up a slot back there for guys to step in. He could get a lot of playing time if Columbus decided to train Mateychuk and Jiříček in Columbus instead of Cleveland. However, if both players do start in Cleveland, Kňažko will need to stand out and prove he should be there.
With Don Waddell in charge, he's going to want to look at a lot of these players to see what they can do for the future. He has one year left on his contract and then he'll be an RFA, so that needs to happen now for the young defenseman.
Will Samuel Kňažko be a part of that future?
What do you think? Please share your thoughts on our forum.
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