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Connor Knapp, G |
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Catches: L |
Height: 6-6 |
Weight: 225 |
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Born: 1990-05-01 |
Hometown: New York, NY |
Drafted: 2009 by Buffalo, 164th overall |
Observations:
July 2015 – Knapp played a full season under contract for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the AHL in 2014-15. Knapp only signed a one year AHL contract last year which means he is now an UFA looking for a team who will give him a contract, likely in the AHL as a backup. No reason to have him anywhere on your fantasy radar. Paul Zwambag
April 2014 – Well the goaltending carousel continued in the Buffalo Sabres crease as yet another goalie went down to injury. Knapp's appearance in the crease when he finished up the third period versus the powerhouse Boston Bruins set a record for most goaltenders used in one regular season with nine. Knapp starts one game and is already breaking records, but I think it's safe to say that will probably be the only record he will break in the NHL. Hackett's injury is serious and therefore he was ruled out for the rest of the season so the Sabres turned to Knapp to start the season finale and unfortunately he wasn't able to pull out the W in his debut as they fell 4-3 to the visiting Islanders. One small feat for 6'6" kid from New York is he was able to pick up an assist on Jamie McBain's opening goal in the first period and with that takes home the scoring crown for the Sabres netminders. Also, with that milestone he may be one of the only goalies in the history of the NHL to get a point in his first career NHL start but I couldn't confirm this. All in all it was quite the roller coaster season for Knapp as he played the majority of the year in the ECHL but was able to end it in the NHL due to the numerous injuries suffered between the pipes. With his play this season it likely hasn't won over anyone in the new front office regime and with his status as a UFA it is unlikely Buffalo re-signs him as he is buried in their depth chart behind more promising and/or developed netminders. Travis Watson
March 2013 – Buffalo recently re-assigned Knapp to the ECHL due to playing poorly in very limited action. His size is great, but he is a bit robotic with his movements and seems to need to think before he moves which makes him not very fluent in the crease. He also struggles with plays down below the goal line, quite often losing track of the puck. I do see potential in him with some good coaching as he does have raw puck stopping ability and solid rebound control. He has embraced the move to Greenville, and has preformed stronger than Nathan Lieuwen at that level, but Lieuwen deserved an opportunity to get a try at the AHL level. The situation will get more interesting for Buffalo as Andrey Makarov enters the equation next season. Jason Banks
September, 2012 – Knapp capped off his collegiate career with a stellar showing, finishing the season with a miniscule 1.69 GAA and a fine .933 Save Percentage, playing in 24 games. Knapp is a massive netminder who uses his size extremely well and is adept at playing the angles as well. Not the quickest or most agile goalie, Knapp also faces a depth issue in Buffalo, where he is behind Ryan Miller, Jhonas Enroth, David Leggio and possibly Nathan Lieuwen.
Fantasy Outlook: C-
He has upside, but is likely three years away if he makes it at all.
Footage:
Knapp at Buffalo development camp:
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