Gavin Bayreuther (born May 12, 1994) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

defenseman Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from Goal (ice hockey), scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the l ...

for the

Carolina Hurricanes The Carolina Hurricanes (colloquially known as the Canes) are a professional ice hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Hurricanes compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Con ...

in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

(NHL). He has previously played with the

Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. The Stars compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. The Stars ...

and

Columbus Blue Jackets The Columbus Blue Jackets (often simply referred to as the Jackets) are a professional ice hockey team based in Columbus, Ohio. The Blue Jackets compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern C ...

in the NHL and

Lausanne HC Lausanne Hockey Club is an ice hockey team based in the city of Lausanne, Switzerland, which competes in the National League (NL). During the 2004–05 NHL lockout, the HC Lausanne signed National Hockey League players Martin St. Louis and Andy Ro ...

in the

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

(NL).

Playing career

Bayreuther grew up in

Canaan, New Hampshire Canaan is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 3,794 at the 2020 census. It is the location of Mascoma State Forest. Canaan is home to the Cardigan Mountain School, the town's largest employer. The main ...

, attended a preparatory middle-school

Cardigan Mountain School Cardigan Mountain School, also called Cardigan or CMS, for short, is an all-boys independent boarding school for grades six through nine, located on 62 Alumni Drive, Canaan, New Hampshire, United States. It was founded in 1945 on land provided b ...

. Bayreuther then attended

Holderness School The Holderness School is a private, coeducational college- preparatory school in Holderness, near Plymouth, New Hampshire in the United States. The student body of 300 is drawn from 22 U.S. states and 14 foreign countries. While Holderness oper ...

, located in Plymouth, NH. He played four seasons at

St. Lawrence University St. Lawrence University is a private liberal arts college in the village of Canton in St. Lawrence County, New York. It has roughly 2,100 undergraduate and 100 graduate students. Though St. Lawrence today is nonsectarian, it was founded in 1 ...

, where he was named to the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

East Second All-American Team and ECAC First All-Team during his junior and senior seasons. After his senior season, Bayreuther signed with the

as an undrafted free agent on March 15, 2017, and was assigned to the

Texas Stars The Texas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Cedar Park, Texas. They are the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the National Hockey League's (NHL) Dallas Stars. They play their homes games at the H-E-B Center. History In ...

after training camp. On November 15, 2018, he was called up to Dallas after

Marc Methot Marc Philippe Methot (born June 21, 1985) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. During his career, he played for the National Hockey League's Columbus Blue Jackets, Ottawa Senators, and Dallas Stars. Playing career Amateur Metho ...

was placed on injured reserve. He recorded his first career NHL goal on November 23, in a 6–4 win over the

Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. The Senators compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Di ...

. On October 10, 2020, Bayreuther was signed as a free agent to a one-year, two-way contract with the

. In the pandemic delayed season, Bayreuther split time between the Blue Jackets and AHL affiliate, the

Cleveland Monsters The Cleveland Monsters are a professional ice hockey team based in Cleveland. They are the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Monsters play home games at Rocket Mortgage F ...

. In 9 games with the Blue Jackets, Bayreuther collected one goal from the blueline. On July 21, 2021, Bayreuther was selected from the Blue Jackets at the 2021 NHL expansion draft by the

Seattle Kraken The Seattle Kraken are a professional ice hockey team based in Seattle. The Kraken compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. The t ...

. In a surprise selection as an impending free agent, Bayreuther's tenure with the Kraken was short lived, as he returned to the Blue Jackets in signing a two-year contract on July 28, 2021. On July 2, 2023, Bayreuther signed a one-year, league minimum ($775,000) contract to return to the

. In the 2023–24 season, Bayreuther was limited to just 17 appearances through injury in the AHL with the Texas Stars, posting 7 assists. As a free agent, Bayreuther signed his first contract abroad in agreeing to a one-year deal with Swiss club, Lausanne HC of the NL, on July 30, 2024. On July 12, 2025, Bayreuther signed a one-year, two-way contract with the

Personal life

Bayreuther has three siblings, two brothers and a sister named Morgan. He is the cousin of fellow defenseman Ben Lovejoy. He grew up in Canaan, New Hampshire

Career statistics

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bayreuther, Gavin 1994 births Living people American people of German descent American men's ice hockey defensemen Cedar Rapids RoughRiders players Cleveland Monsters players Columbus Blue Jackets players Dallas Stars players Fargo Force players Ice hockey people from New Hampshire People from Canaan, New Hampshire St. Lawrence Saints men's ice hockey players Texas Stars players Undrafted National Hockey League players AHCA Division I men's ice hockey All-Americans 21st-century American sportsmen