From Kladno to Saginaw to Henderson, Matyas Sapovaliv’s hockey journey has spanned far and wide. Now he’s hoping the next step is on hockey’s greatest stage right here in the sports and entertainment capital of the world.
Sapovaliv was draped in sliver last season with the Henderson Silver Knights and put forth a respectable rookie season going up against some of the best center’s in the American Hockey League.
“We gave him a lot and he responded well playing against the other team’s best,” said Silver Knights coach Ryan Craig. “Sapo was learning on the fly. The best way to describe his game is he has a high hockey IQ and he cares about his own zone. He does things that allow you to win.”
The Golden Knights opened rookie camp on Thursday which will include games in Denver against rookie squads from the Colorado Avalanche and Utah Mammoth.
Main camp is slated to begin a week from now and Sapovaliv is hoping to show VGK management that he’s on the cusp of NHL work.
The 21-year-old had 11 goals and 19 points in 71 AHL games last season.
Two years ago, Sapovaliv was riding buses in the Ontario Hockey League. Last year, he was cutting his teeth in the AHL with Henderson. Now, the 6'4 Czech center is on the doorstep of the NHL, standing in rookie camp with one eye firmly fixed on main camp with the Vegas Golden Knights.
“What I learned is that I have to be responsible with the puck,” Sapovaliv said. “Everything’s more intense. It’s about details in pro. You have to win every game and nothing else matters. You have to be so responsible with the puck and you just can’t make mistakes.”
The story begins in Kladno, Czech Republic, where hockey isn’t just a sport but a birthright. It’s Jaromir Jagr’s town. It’s Tomas Plekanec’s town. And it’s Sapovaliv’s town.
“My favorite Czech player? I’ll go with Tomas Plekanec,” he said. “I think I can take some of his game and use it to become and NHL player. He was really good—responsible, great on draws. I really liked his game.”
Plekanec wasn’t just a boyhood idol. For a season, he was a teammate. So was Jagr.
“I played one season for Kladno in the pro league before I left for Saginaw,” Sapovaliv said. “Jagr was there at that time too, so we played together one season. Pleky was there too. We worked on draws all the time, and with Jagr we were doing some shooting. It was nice to see these guys take care of each other and the entire team. It was really beneficial to play with them.”
That’s not a line every AHL rookie can deliver. Sapovaliv’s formative hockey years included lessons from Jagr, a Hockey Hall of Famer and Plekanec, who played over 1,000 NHL games.
Sapovaliv knows what he brings to the rink.
“I think I read the game really well,” he said. “So I would say hockey IQ, hockey sense—that’s my favorite part of my game.”
It’s the kind of tool scouts love, but he’s still working to round out the rest. That’s why this summer was part rest, part grind. He spent two months at home in Czechia with family before returning early to Vegas in August.
“I wanted to get rid of the jet lag, get on the ice, and be ready for the season,” he said.
Off the ice, he’s adjusted quickly. He learned English on the fly in Saginaw, admits cooking has become a passion—“steaks, mashed potatoes, some Czech meals, soups”—and even dabbles in golf, though he laughs at his game.
In Henderson, Sapovaliv isn’t alone. He shares the ice and the dressing room with fellow Czechs Jakub Brabenec and Jakub Demek.
“We usually talk Czech together,” he said. “It’s nice you can hang out with someone from your country. In the locker room, we try to use English so others can understand, but it’s good to have that connection.”
Sapovaliv isn’t making bold promises about main camp. That’s not his style. Instead, he talks about progress.
“I just want to show them that I’m working on myself,” he said. “That I’m a different player, that I’m still growing.”
That’s the Czech connection. A town like Kladno produces players who value responsibility, detail, and the slow burn of growth.
Now Sapovaliv is carrying it forward—one draw, one shift, one camp at a time.
