Luke Kunin was traded to the San Jose Sharks by the Nashville Predators on Friday for John Leonard and a third-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft.
Kunin, a 24-year-old forward, had 22 points (13 goals, nine assists) in 82 games for the Predators this season, and one assist in four Stanley Cup Playoff games. He can become a restricted free agent on July 13.
The trade was the first involving a player made by Mike Grier, the first Black general manager in NHL history, who was hired by the Sharks on Tuesday.
"A high-character kid, plays the game hard, competes hard, got some really good leadership qualities," Grier said of Kunin, "so he's got a lot of things we'd like to bring into the team and the organization. I think he fits in nicely with some of the core values I have and we have in the organization."
Selected by the Minnesota Wild with the No. 15 pick in the 2016 NHL Draft, Kunin has 93 points (46 goals, 47 assists) in 251 games with the Wild and Predators and five points (four goals, one assist) in 14 playoff games.
Leonard, a 23-year-old forward, had two points (one goal, one assist) in 14 games for the Sharks this season and can become an RFA on Wednesday. Selected by San Jose in the sixth round (No. 182) of the 2018 NHL Draft, he has 15 points (four goals, 11 assists) in 58 career games.
NHL.com staff writer William Douglas contributed to this report
