SAN JOSE — The San Jose Sharks traded some young blue line depth for a seasoned enforcer on Thursday, sending defenseman Henry Thrun to the Toronto Maple Leafs for tough guy forward Ryan Reaves.

The Sharks were expected to trade one of their defenseman after signing Dmitry Orlov to a two-year contract and claiming Nick Leddy off waivers from the St. Louis Blues last week. The moves left the Sharks with eight defensemen, including Thrun, on one-way contracts.

Reaves, 38, has been known as one of hockey’s premier fighters and bigger personalities during his NHL career. In a combined 912 games with the Blues, Pittsburgh Penguins, Vegas Golden Knights, New York Rangers, Minnesota Wild, and Maple Leafs, Reaves has 137 points (63 goals, 74 assists) and 1,100 penalty minutes.

Reaves, listed at 6-foot-2 and 225 pounds, had two assists in 35 games with the Leafs last season, averaging 7:48 in ice time per game. He also had a goal in three games with the Toronto Marlies of the AHL, and is entering the final year of a three-year, $4.05 million contract that carries a $1.35 million cap hit.

Reaves was with the New York Rangers from July 2021 to Nov. 2022, when Sharks general manager Mike Grier was a hockey operations advisor with the team.

“We’re excited to welcome Ryan to the organization,” Grier said in a statement. “He will bring energy, personality, physical play, and toughness to our group. He has been a part of many winning teams, and I witnessed firsthand the positive impact he can bring to a group when I was with the Rangers.”

Thrun is going into the final year of a two-year, $2 million deal. He is set to be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights next year, and could have remained under team control for several more seasons.

Thrun, 24, had mainly been used as a second- or third-pair defenseman by the Sharks since he was acquired from the Anaheim Ducks on Feb. 28, 2023. He appeared in 119 games with San Jose over three seasons, had 25 points, and averaged 18:44 in ice time. This past season, Thrun, a Harvard alum, appeared in 60 games, had 12 points, and averaged 17:31 of ice time.

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Originally Published: July 10, 2025 at 7:14 PM PDT