For anyone on the fringe of an NHL roster, a new general manager and entirely new coaching staff could be an opportunity to start with a clean slate and build momentum toward earning a roster spot.
For the guys on the edges of the Sharks roster, this is true. One problem, though — this isn’t going to be a typical training camp. It is condensed because the team is leaving for Berlin, Germany, in eight days.
“There’s not a lot of time, so if you’re going to make an impression, you’ve got to make it in a hurry,” coach David Quinn said after the first practice of the season Thursday. “We just don’t have a normal structured training camp with our trip to Europe. They understand that.”
Thomas Bordeleau didn’t wait long to offer his first argument for earning a seat on that plane. Bordeleau, a consensus top-two prospect for the organization, scored San Jose’s first goal in the rookie faceoff tournament last weekend at Tech CU Arena.
Bordeleau collected a pass at the opposing blue line from William Eklund, the club’s other consensus top-two prospect, skated into the left circle and wired a wrist shot off the crossbar and into the net less than 10 minutes into the opening period against Anaheim. Ducks’ prospects. He finished the game with three points, including an assist on the game-winning, highlight-reel goal from Eklund in overtime.
It was a continuation of Bordeleau’s success after signing with the Sharks at the end of his junior season with Michigan in April.
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