Man of the Week: Jan Drozg

KHL.ru continues its ‘Man of the Week’ column with Jan Drozg. The Slovenian Amur newcomer had a striking KHL debut and is looking forward to leading the Tigers to the playoffs.

Slovenian players having an impact role in the KHL isn’t anything new – in the past, several players from the small European country had significant contribution to their respective clubs. Some of the most prominent Slovenians in the KHL include Robert Sabolic, Jan Mursak, and Rok Ticar – all of whom have passed the 100-point mark. However, for some reasons, it has been a little while since other Slovenian players had an impact on the league, but it looks like Amur found a new one in Jan Drozg. The native of Maribor, the same town that produced Mursak, signed in Khabarovsk in late October, and started his journey with the Tigers in November. He has so far produced points in all his games but one, for a total of 6 (3+3) points in six games played.

Early life

Jan Drozg was born on Apr 01, 1999, in Maribor, the second-largest city in Slovenia, and hometown of several players like the aforementioned Mursak and other active in different European leagues. He started playing for the local HDK Maribor, for whom he made his debut in pro hockey in the Slovenian league in 2014-2015. He also played a year for HK Celje in the Austrian junior league, where he was the top scorer, had the most goals, and distributed the most assists in the same season. Seeking more opportunities, he then moved North to Sweden, where he spent the next two years with the Leksands IF organization – there, Drozg played at the U18 and U20 level.

Move to North America

After his seasons in Sweden, where he also represented Slovenia in the junior international scene, he was drafted in the NHL by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the fifth round of the 2017 NHL Entry Draft. He was also drafted in the CHL by the Shawinigan Cataractes as he was ready to cross the Ocean to pursue a career overseas. Drozg will end up spending two seasons in the QMJHL with Shawinigan – reaching the playoffs in his second attempt and leading the team in scoring in 2018-2019. At the end of that campaign, he also made his debut with the Slovene national team at the 2019 IIHF Div. A WC in Astana, where he was the top scorer, but Slovenia failed to return to the elite division.

After debuting in the AHL in 2018, Drozg finally left junior hockey before the 2019-2020 campaign, which he spent with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the AHL and the Wheeling Nailers of the ECHL. He then returned home during the first part of the 2020-2021 campaign, lining up for HK Olimpija Ljubljiana of the Alps Hockey League just to return to Wilkes-Barre later on. Last term, Drozg started the season in Wilkes-Barre again, then was loaned to the Grand Rapid Griffins, where he played 15 games to end the season. As an impending free agent in the NHL, Drozg signed in the KHL with Amur in late October.

Playing in the KHL

Drozg’s performance with the Tigers were excellent since the start – he had an assist in his debut game an soon he scored his first KHL goal in his third game, beating Ilya Proskuryakov blocker-side after a quick acceleration on the left flank.

The Tigers are currently the eleventh seed in the East, but the competition for a playoffs spot in the East is incredibly tight, and no team can be counted out yet. Drozg’s points will be key for Amur to reach the top-eight.