For fans who don’t watch all of a team’s prospects play, it’s easy to lose track of the young players in the system, especially the defensemen who tend to take a little longer to develop. This can be especially true of European players. While you might hear their name on draft day, you sometimes don’t hear about them again for a year or two. Aside from a check in here or there, their development is a bit of a mystery. And, unless you’re a diehard hockey fan, you don’t see a lot of European hockey games and their highlight reels are few and far between. For most San Jose Sharks fans, that’s what’s likely happened when it comes to prospect Leo Sahlin Wallenius.
Sahlin Wallenius has been a regular on our list since he was drafted in 2024. He ranked 19th last year and was 15th on our list in his draft year. This year, he’s smack dab in the middle at 17th.
Position: Defenseman
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 185 pounds
Age: 20
Date of Birth: April 10, 2006
Draft Year: 2024 (53rd overall by San Jose Sharks)
Shoots: Left
2026-27 Team: San Jose Barracuda
The good news for fans is that this year, they won’t need to tune into European games to see who General Manager Mike Grier and his team drafted. That’s because Sahlin Wallenius is finally expected to play in North America. After two seasons of playing in the SHL, the defenseman has signed his entry-level deal with the Sharks and is scheduled to start playing with the Barracuda this fall.
Sahlin Wallenius appears to be ready for the next step. He just wrapped up his first full season in Sweden’s highest league, playing for the Växjö Lakers HC in the SHL. He had 13 points (3 G, 10 A) in 32 games with Växjö and 6 points (2 G, 4 A) in 10 playoff games. Sahlin Wallenius also represented Sweden internationally, playing on the U20 team at the World Junior Championship. He had 6 points (1 G, 5 A) in 7 games and wore an “A” for Team Sweden. Sweden ultimately won gold in that tournament.
What we like
It was in the World Junior Championship that Sahlin Wallenius shined. Do not expect the defenseman to be a high-scoring blueliner along the lines of a Quinn Hughes or Cale Makar, but he is defensively responsible on the backend and was Sweden’s most relied upon defenseman in the WJC.
“I thought Sweden’s deployment of their defensemen was exceptional too. They knew which players to use in the right moments. It always helps to have a true stopper and that’s what they had in Leo Sahlin Wallenius (SJS), who played 28:10 in the final,” wrote FloHockey’s Chris Peters after Sweden’s gold medal win at the WJC.
“His progression is especially noticeable in how comfortably he handles pressure and maintains structure against high level competition … Sahlin Wallenius plays a controlled, reliable game rather than a flashy one. Offensively, he contributes through smart puck decisions and steady support play,” wrote Brock Otten of McKeen’s Hockey.
Sahlin Wallenius will not always make the highlight reel plays, but he will make the right plays and sometimes, that’s better. He’s an “excellent skater” according to The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler and a “natural playmaker.” The Sharks have built up a strong set of forwards, so a player like Sahlin Wallenius, who knows how to move the puck up the ice and distribute it while still being responsible in his own end may be just what the doctor ordered.
The Athletic’s Corey Pronman says Sahlin Wallenius also has “good hands and vision.”
“He’s a very solid two-way player, with a powerful and efficient stride that allows him to easily evade pressure and skate pucks up ice. He closes on checks well and is great coming back on pucks in a way that should translate,” writes Pronman.
Areas of improvement
There is no doubt that Sahlin Wallenius is a highly skilled defenseman. However, skill can be negated by a well-timed, bruising hit. A lot of criticism of the Swedish defenseman is that he isn’t tough enough, especially in the areas where it matters the most, on the boards and in front of the net.
He will be tested mightily this season, where veteran AHL forwards are unforgiving in those tough areas.
This will be Sahlin Wallenius’ first season playing on North American ice, and it’s going to be a tough transition for the defenseman. It’s a smaller rink than he’s used to playing on in Sweden, and that comes with drawbacks. Smaller ice takes away time and space. Forwards close in on you fast. They hit hard to separate you from the puck.
Sahlin Wallenius will have to develop toughness quickly if he’s going to survive the AHL.
What’s next for Sahlin Wallenius?
Look for Sahlin Wallenius to ease his way onto the Barracuda this fall. He’s lucky enough to have a strong supporting cast of young defensemen to play with, including fellow countryman Mattias Havelid, who made the transition from Sweden just last season. Nolan Allan is also in the fold, and he’s a tough customer. Eric Pohlkamp is also known to bring a bit of grit while Libor Hajek will offer some veteran stability on the blueline.
Sahlin Wallenius will have support as he transitions to North American hockey.
He will also have the opportunity to step into a leading role on the power play, if he claims a spot. With Luca Cagnoni expected to jump to the Sharks during training camp and Lucas Carlsson no longer with the team, there is an opening for puck-moving defensemen with the Barracuda.
Highlights
As a defenseman, a lot of the points that Sahlin Wallenius is going to get will be assists, but he gets them in different ways. Take, for instance, this one against Germany in the WJC.
THE CAPTAIN, BERGLUND PUTS SWEDEN UP 3-1 ON A BEAUTIFUL REDIRECT! #WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/u76ZIavLSR
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) December 29, 2025
Notice how all the captain of Sweden has to do is put his stick down on the ice and the pass ricochets off and into the net. Sahlin Wallenius’ awareness of what’s happening around him makes that happen.
Then there’s this helper, also during the WJC. You can see just how smooth of a skater Sahlin Wallenius is.
Eric Nilson SCORES less than a minute in for Sweden! 💥#WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/7N03KlXvjZ
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) December 28, 2025
Sahlin Wallenius brings the puck in over the blueline and then feathers a pass into the middle of the ice, offering his countryman an easy score.
And finally, Sahlin Wallenius can score as well. Here’s one of his goals from the WJC.
Leo Sahlin Wallenius scores his first of the tournament to make it 6-2 Sweden!#WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/c4ca68C48y
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) January 2, 2026
2026 Top 25 Under 25 countdown … so far
17. Leo Sahlin Wallenius
18. Cam Lund
19. Ethan Cardwell
20. Nolan Allan
21. Haoxi Wang
22. Cole McKinney
23. Carson Wetsch
24. Mattias Havelid
25. Christian Kirsch
Honorable Mentions: Joey Muldowney, Teddy Mutryn, Andre Gasseau, Brady Knowling and Alexander Karmanov
Editor’s Note: More than 100 people voted in our fan poll this year, though admittedly, not everyone filled out the entire form, i.e., all 25 spots and the honorable mentions. In some cases, some people filled out their top ten and left the rest blank. While it makes the math a bit harder, we found the fairest (and easiest) thing to do was average the scores based on the total responses received. While blank scores counted as zero, it didn’t seem to skew the results too badly. Ultimately, this isn’t an exact science, but I think you’ll find it’s a pretty good list.
