The New Jersey Devils announced today that the team has acquired forward Nick Bjugstad in a trade with St. Louis in exchange for forward Thomas Bordeleau and a conditional fourth-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft. The pick will be the latest of the three fourth-round picks that New Jersey currently owns (Dallas, Winnipeg or New Jersey). The announcement was made by President/General Manager Tom Fitzgerald.
Bjugstad, 33, who is in his 14th NHL season, has played in 35 games with St. Louis this year. The 6-foot-6, 210-pound forward has won 134 of 262 face-offs this season (51.2%) and tallied seven points (6g-1a), while his 73 hits ranked eighth on the Blues.
The right-handed shot has totaled 337 career points (163g-174a) in 795 NHL games since he made his NHL debut with Florida on April 6, 2013. Bjugstad spent parts of seven seasons with the Panthers from 2012-13 to 2018-19, recording a career-high 49 points and 30 assists in 2017-18. The veteran has also played with Pittsburgh (2018-2020) and Minnesota from 2020-21 to 2021-22. He began the 2022-23 season with Arizona and was later traded to Edmonton on March 2, 2023. Bjugstad returned to Arizona for the 2023-24 season and was a member of the expansion Utah Hockey Club last year.
Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on July 17, 1992, Florida selected Bjugstad with the 19th overall pick in the 2010 NHL Draft. Before his professional experience, Bjugstad was named Minnesota’s Mr. Hockey (Best Minnesota High School Hockey Player) during his high school senior year at Blaine High in 2010. He spent three seasons in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the University of Minnesota from 2010-11 to 2012-13 and recorded 98 career points in 109 games. On the international stage, Bjugstad has represented Team USA several times, which includes the International Ice Hockey Federation’s (IIHF) World Junior Championship in 2011 and 2012. He helped USA win bronze medals in 2011, and then at the IIHF’s World Championship in 2013.
Bjugstad is in his first season of a two-year contract worth $3.5 million ($1,750,000 AAV), which was signed with St. Louis on July 1, 2025. He carries postseason experience, having played in 27 career games in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
