The American Hockey League has taken notice of Thomas Bordeleau’s strong first half to the season, and so have the San Jose Sharks.
Bordeleau on Wednesday was chosen to be the San Jose Barracuda’s representative in the AHL All-Star Classic Feb. 5-6 in Laval, Quebec, as he’ll get a chance to play in the event for the first time near his hometown of Montreal.
Bordeleau, 21, leads the Barracuda – the Sharks’ top minor league affiliate – and all AHL rookies with 17 goals in 36 games, including six in his last 10 games before Wednesday. Already, Bordeleau is just eight goals shy of the Barracuda’s single-season record of 25 goals, set by Barclay Goodrow in 2016-17.
Bordeleau has always been an impactful offensive player, including last season when he had five assists in his first eight NHL games. But the Sharks in October assigned him to the AHL near the start of the regular season, feeling he needed more time to round out other parts of his game at the professional level.
Sharks coach David Quinn said Bordeleau, “is making progress. I’m not surprised he made the All-Star game. This guy’s a talented player. He continues to improve, he’s coachable, he works hard and he has made strides for sure, and he’s getting closer and closer to his ultimate goal.”
A recall to the Sharks’ roster would seem to be the next logical step if Bordeleau continues to progress, but it’s still unclear as to when that might happen.
With the addition of forward Mikey Eyssimont, the Sharks already have 14 forwards on their 23-man roster and barring an injury or a trade, would need to place a centerman or a winger on waivers to clear a spot for Bordeleau.
Quinn, as expected, wasn’t about to declare Wednesday when Bordeleau might get promoted. Logistically, it might not happen until after the March 3 trade deadline when the Sharks’ pending unrestricted free agents, such as forwards Nick Bonino and Matt Nieto, could get moved to playoff contenders.
But, things can change quickly.
Asked if the Sharks are getting closer to giving some Barracuda players a look, Quinn said, “I’ll keep those conversations private. Obviously, there were a lot of discussions that happened during the course of the day and when he gets called up, he gets called up.”
The Barracuda play in San Diego against the Gulls on Wednesday night to conclude a four-game road trip and return to San Jose to start a three-game homestand with games against the Abbotsford Canucks on Saturday and Sunday.
Bordeleau, son of former NHL player and current Nashville Predators skills coach Sebastien Bordeleau, was born in Houston but grew up in Montreal and is fluent in French. Laval, home to the Rocket of the AHL, is located just outside of Montreal.
Bordeleau is part of the 12-player Pacific Division team that also features Gilroy native and Calgary Wranglers goalie Dustin Wolf. The skills competition will take place on Feb. 5 and a 3-on-3, round-robin tournament between the four division teams will take place the next day.
SIMEK UPDATE: Quinn said Wednesday there remains no timeline for when Radim Simek might skate again, adding, though, that the defenseman has felt better of late.
Simek hasn’t played since he suffered an upper-body injury in a game against the Dallas Stars on Dec. 31 in a collision with Mason Marchment. Simek was placed on injured reserve last week after the Sharks claimed Eyssimont off waivers, and he missed his fifth straight game Wednesday when San Jose played the Los Angeles Kings.
Simek was also injured for four games in November after he was checked in the head by Minnesota Wild forward Mason Shaw. Asked how Simek’s latest injury compares to his earlier one, Quinn said the two were similar.
“It’s day-to-day,” Quinn said. “It all depends on how he continues to feel. He’s certainly making progress towards (skating) but that hasn’t been discussed.”
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