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2022 NHL Prospect Watch – Columbus Blue Jackets – WHL Network

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With the 2022-23 NHL season on the horizon, we’re putting a focus on current and former WHL players looking to make their mark at the next level.

The 2022 NHL Prospect Watch series will feature some of the current and past WHL talent recently drafted or signed to NHL contracts, and having appeared in fewer than 50 NHL games.

Our series continues with a look at the prospect pool of the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Jake Christiansen
Defenseman Jake Christiansen made eight appearances for the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2021-22, appearing in his NHL debut on January 6 at New Jersey. The product of West Vancouver, BC scored his first NHL goal, coincidentally also against the Devils, just under two months later on March 1. He added 13 tallies and 45 points from the blueline in 62 games with the Cleveland Monsters of the AHL, leading goals in the league by a defenseman and earning a spot on the AHL Second All-Star Team. As a WHL rearguard, Christiansen spent his entire five-year career with the Everett Silvertips, leading the league with 22 goals in 2019-20.

Trey Fix-Wolansky
Like Christiansen, forward Trey Fix-Wolansky also made his NHL debut in 2021-22, scoring a goal for the Blue Jackets in a road contest at Washington on February 8. In all, the product of Edmonton, Alta. Appeared in six games with Columbus last season, helping out the offense at AHL Cleveland with 33 points (15G-18A) in 53 games. Fix Wolansky spent three WHL seasons with the Edmonton Oil Kings from 2016-19, serving as Edmonton’s captain during his final WHL campaign. Over his three years as an Oil King, Fix-Wolansky scored 93 goals, cracking the 100-point barrier during the 2018-19 campaign.

Samuel Knazko
A third-round pick by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2020 NHL Draft, defenseman Samuel Knazko played all over the world in 2021-22. The Slovak defenseman started the season with TPS U20 in Finland, scoring 14 points in 15 games, before being invited to represent his country at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Japan. Knazko and Slovakia collected a bronze medal, after which he arrived in North America and joined the Seattle Thunderbirds for the Club’s stretch run. Knazko chipped in with 20 points in 27 games during the regular season, then added a goal and five helpers as Seattle reached the WHL Championship series this past June.

Denton Mateychuk
Defenseman Denton Mateychuk became the second Columbus Blue Jackets prospect on the Moose Jaw Warriors roster when he was selected 12th-overall in the 2022 NHL Draft. Mateychuk, who hails from Dominion City, Man., was an offensive catalyst on the Moose Jaw blue line in 2021-22, scoring 64 points in 65 games, a total that helped him finish fifth among WHL defensemen in scoring last season. Mateychuk was named to the WHL East Division First All-Star Team, after which he added 10 points in 10 playoff games as the Warriors reached the Second Round of the 2022 WHL Playoffs.

Martin Rysavy
Forward Martin Rysavy scored eight goals and 26 points in his first season in North America as a member of the Moose Jaw Warriors, appearing in 45 games for the East Division Club. A seventh-round selection by Columbus in the 2021 NHL Draft, Rysavy spent his summer competing for Czechia at the 2022 IIHF World Junior Championship, helping his country to a fourth-place finish by scoring a pair of goals in the tournament. Rysavy was originally selected sixth-overall by Moose Jaw in the 2020 CHL Import Draft.

Stanislav Svozil
Defenseman Stanislav Svozil was selected by the Blue Jackets in the third round of the 2021 NHL Draft, signing his entry-level contract with the NHL Club in August of last year. The Czech blueliner appeared in 59 games for the Regina Pats during the 2021-22 WHL season, scoring 10 times and totaling 41 points in his debut WHL campaign. This summer, Svozil represented Czechia at the 2022 IIHF World Junior Championship in Edmonton, totaling three points from the blue line as his side skated to a fourth-place finish.