Thomas Bordeleau signs one-year, two-way deal with Devils

On Thursday, New Jersey Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald announced that the team has signed forward Thomas Bordeleau to a one-year, two-way contract. The deal carries an NHL cap hit of $775,000 and a minor-league salary of $100,000 for the 2025-26 season. $125,000 of the contract is guaranteed.

Bordeleau came into the Devils’ hands after he was traded to New Jersey by the San Jose Sharks on July 2, in exchange for forward Shane Bowers. Bordleau, previously a restricted free agent, was at the end of a one-year deal that he signed with the Sharks last July, which had an AAV of $874,125.

It was the first time Bordeleau had changed scenery since turning pro at the end of the 2021-22 season. He had been a part of the Sharks’ organization since the team took him in the second round, 38th overall, of the 2020 NHL Draft. After a rather successful career at the University of Michigan, the Houston native has struggled to establish himself in the NHL lineup over most of his young career.

Bordeleau played a career-high 27 games for the Sharks in 2023-24, scoring six goals and five assists for 11 points. However, with a lot of new faces joining the team last season, the 23-year-old spent almost all of the season in the American Hockey League with the San Jose Barracuda, San Jose’s top farm team. Bordeleau did get into one NHL game, that coming on April 13 against the Calgary Flames.

In 44 NHL appearances, Boredeleau has scored six goals and 12 assists for 18 points.

In 59 games with the Barracuda this past season, Bordeleau notched 14 goals and a career-high 24 assists for 38 points, the second-best offensive season of his minor-league career. In 161 AHL games across four seasons, he has registered 47 goals and 60 assists for 107 points.

It’s expected that Bordeleau will join the Devils’ AHL affiliate, the Utica Comets, this coming fall.