San Jose Sharks place defenseman Leon Gawanke on waivers for purpose of contract termination

The San Jose Sharks have placed Leon Gawanke on waivers for purpose of contract termination. Gawanke was acquired by the Sharks this past offseason from the Winnipeg Jets in exchange for Artemi Kniazev. He played this season for the San Jose Barracuda in the American Hockey League and put up good numbers there. Through 38 games played for the Barracuda, Gawanke scored eight goals and 27 points with 37 penalty minutes and a -7 rating.

Gawanke ranked fourth on the Barracuda in points and first among defenseman, with one more point than Sharks’ top prospect Shakir Mukhamadullin. The Berlin, Germany native was originally selected in the fifth-round of the 2017 NHL Draft by the Jets. He was drafted out of the QMJHL, when he played for the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles. He was one of the best players on Screaming Eagles during his three years there and played alongside future NHLers Drake Batherson and Pierre-Luc Dubois for much of his time there.

Gawanke turned pro in the 2019-20 season when he joined the Manitoba Moose, the Jets’ AHL affiliate. Since then he has spent nearly all of his time playing in the AHL for the Moose and later the Barracuda. He also played a six-game stint with the Berlin Polar Bears in the DEL during the COVID-19 shortened 2020-21 season.

The 24-year-old defenseman has a lot of offensive talent and has showcased that throughout his time in the AHL. He’s played 245 games in that league in his career and scored 43 goals and 141 points in that span.

Gawanke is not a top NHL prospect anymore but he is still young and has been producing well over the last few years. It would be very surprising if he doesn’t get signed by another NHL team in the coming months.