Samuel Knazko

June 2025 – Knazko completed his third season with the Cleveland Monsters in the AHL, scoring four goals, adding 12 assists and keeping his nose clean with only 14 penalty minutes in 55 games. Aside from a two game stint in the NHL in 2022-2023, he has been mostly an AHLer. He will be 23 this summer, and at present is without a contract as he was not extended a Qualifying offer. He is still young, and a decent puck-moving defenseman, so its quite likely he gets offered a two-way deal by a team needing some defensive depth. It is also quite possible Knazko chooses to head back to Europe if he prefers. He is not a fantasy hold at this time. Alex Wyatt

April 2021 – Knazko suffered a nasty knee injury while representing Slovakia at the U20 World Jr championship this year. Before that Knazko was building off his strong draft campaign with 13 points in 22 games. Aggression is Knazko’s game by nature as he is always jumping up in the play to provide any sort of offensive value. Knazko was the standout rear guard of the Slovakian U20 team and is poised to have a big tournament next year with even more development. There is some refinement required on his path to the NHL but Knazko has legitimate top four upside. Buy now in deeper dynasty leagues before his value rises now that he’s returned from his injury. Sam McGilligan

December 2020 – Knazko has been named to Team Slovakia’s’ WJC preliminary camp. This should be a big tournament for the recently drafted 18-year-old. He is slated to play a large role on the team’s backend and will be a major factor in the team’s overall success. His aggressive offensive nature is going to keep the scoring opportunities coming, but their goaltender better be ready to get tested. His risky behavior has been known to lead to defensive breakdowns. Regardless, he will be a player to watch throughout the tournament, especially if you are invested in his future as a fan or fantasy owner. Dave Hall

October 2020 – Knazko was drafted 78th overall by the Blue Jackets. Knazko is expected to spend at least two more years in Europe before crossing the pond.  Jokke Nevalainen

December 2019 – Kňažko is a smart offensive defenseman who likes to join the rush, skate with the puck and use his offensive skillset to set up plays for his teammates as well as quarterback a power play. He is an offensive defenseman with some defensive deficiencies but progress has been seen in that area in the last year and a half. He plays in Finland and has spent last season in Finland as well. He played rather well as a 16-year-old in an under-20 league where he was getting used to Finnish hockey. Kňažko collected 17 points in 49 games for TPS in Jr. SM-liiga during the 2018-2019 season. He then played at the Under-18 World Championship tournament where he played pretty poorly which left big question marks. He then played for Slovakia at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup and redeemed himself. Despite the lack of points, he was one of the best players for Team Slovakia. Kňažko is currently playing in one of the hardest under-20 leagues in the world and is doing a fantastic job for his age despite strong competition. He currently sits at 22 points in 32 games for TPS’ under-20 squad. Kňažko is having a really strong campaign which should help him a lot at the 2020 NHL Draft. Hopefully his World Juniors campaign will go as good as his season so far and helps Slovakia reach a very good position. He will likely be one of the main guys Slovak coaches go to for offense from defense.  Samuel Tirpák