The Columbus Blue Jackets have recalled defensemen Samuel Knazko and Billy Sweezey and added forwards Tyler Angle, Joona Luoto and Mikael Pyyhtia to the roster on emergency recall from the Cleveland Monsters, the club's American Hockey League affiliate, General Manager and Alternate Governor Jarmo Kekalainen announced today. The team also has recalled defenseman Stanislav Svozil from the Western Hockey League's Regina Pats.
Columbus Blue Jackets announce roster moves
Angle, 22, has registered 33 goals and 51 assists for 84 points with 62 penalty minutes and 323 shots on goal in 159 career AHL games with the Monsters since making his professional debut in 2020-21. He has tied his career high in goals with 11-12-23, 28 penalty minutes and 109 shots on goal in 65 appearances this season. The 5-10, 166-pound native of Niagara Falls, Ontario was selected by the Blue Jackets in the seventh round, 212th overall, at the 2019 NHL Draft.
Knazko (pronounced kuh-NAZ-koh) made his North American professional debut this season, registering 1-20-21 with 17 penalty minutes and 43 shots on goal in 49 contests with Cleveland. The 20-year-old Trencin, Slovakia native ranks third among team rookies in assists and points. He split the 2021-22 campaign between TPS (Liiga) and the club's junior team in Finland and the Western Hockey League's Seattle Thunderbirds, posting 5-15-20 in 27 outings with the Thunderbirds. The 6-1, 198-pound blueliner was selected by Columbus in the third round, 78th overall, at the 2020 NHL Draft.
Luoto, 25, has collected 1-0-1 with two penalty minutes in 21 career NHL games with the Blue Jackets and Winnipeg Jets since making his NHL debut in 2019-20. The 6-3, 201-pound forward has skated in five games with Columbus this season, making his debut vs. Florida on April 1 and notching his first career goal at New Jersey on April 6. He has added 16-17-33 and 32 penalty minutes in 74 games with the Monsters and Manitoba Moose over two AHL stints from 2019-23, including 14-11-25 with 10 penalty minutes and 106 shots on goal in 45 appearances with Cleveland this season. The Tampere, Finland native signed a one-year, two-way NHL/AHL contract with Columbus on June 1, 2022.
Pyyhtia (pronounced PEW-tee-uh) made his North American pro debut with Cleveland on March 24 and has notched 3-0-3 with 10 shots on goal in six appearances with the club. He registered 31-32-63 with 26 penalty minutes and 412 shots on goal in 140 career games with TPS (Liiga) from 2019-23. A native of Turku, Finland, he recorded 7-13-20, 16 penalty minutes and 187 shots on goal in 47 contests with TPS in 2022-23. He ranked fifth-T in Liiga in goals, ninth-T in power play goals and 11th-T in game-winning goals in 2021-22, finishing with 21-14-35, six PIM and seven PPG and four GWG in 56 outings with TPS. The 6-0, 166-pound forward was selected by the Blue Jackets in the fourth round, 114th overall, at the 2020 NHL Draft.
Svozil (pronounced s'vo-zihl) notched 21-98-119 with 47 penalty minutes and a +13 plus/minus rating in 115 career WHL games over two seasons with the Regina Pats from 2021-23. The 20-year-old was the East Division's Defenseman of the Year, is a finalist for the Bill Hunter Memorial Trophy as the WHL's Defenseman of the Year and was named to the WHL First All-Star Team this season. He led league blueliners in power play points and finished third in points with 11-67-78 and 39 power play points in 56 regular season games in 2022-23. He added 4-9-13 and was +7 in seven playoff games. The 6-0, 183-pound native of Prerov, Czech Republic was selected by the Blue Jackets in the third round, 69th overall, at the 2021 NHL Draft.
Sweezey, 27, has recorded 0-1-1 and nine penalty minutes in seven appearances with Columbus this season. He made his NHL debut at Minnesota on February 26 and picked up his first career assist vs. Ottawa on April 2. The 6-1, 206-pound blueliner has registered 4-22-26 with 208 penalty minutes in 147 career AHL games with the Monsters and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins since making his professional debut in 2020-21. This season, he has collected 0-11-11 and 68 penalty minutes in 55 games with Cleveland. The Hanson, Massachusetts native signed a two-year, two-way NHL/AHL contract for the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons with the Blue Jackets on Mar. 7, 2022.
The Blue Jackets return to action on Thursday when they host the Pittsburgh Penguins. Game time from Nationwide Arena is 7 p.m. ET. Live coverage on Bally Sports Ohio begins with the Blue Jackets Live pre-game show starting at 6:30 p.m. The game can also be heard on the Blue Jackets Radio Network, including 97.1 The Fan, and online at BlueJackets.com.
