Samuel Laberge

Samuel Laberge (born April 10, 1997) is a Canadian professional ice hockey forward who is currently an unrestricted free agent. He most recently played with the San Jose Barracuda of the American Hockey League while under contract to the San Jose Sharks of the National Hockey League (NHL). Undrafted, Laberge had played in the ECHL and Ligue Nord-Américaine de Hockey (LNAH) before making his NHL debut.

Playing career Junior Prior to playing major junior, Laberge played youth hockey for the Chateâuguay Grenadiers. Cut from the under-18 AAA team in his first year of eligibility, he played at the Midget Espoir level and was drafted by the Rimouski Océanic of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) at the conclusion of the season. He won the Jimmy Ferrari Cup with Chateâuguay as Quebec AAA champions in 2014.

During a brief stint with the Océanic in the 2013–14 season, Laberge scored his first QMJHL goal against the Baie-Comeau Drakkar on September 14, 2013.

In his rookie season in 2014–15, Laberge and the Océanic won the President's Cup as QMJHL champions. Although he went undrafted at the 2015 NHL entry draft, he received invites to multiple NHL teams' summer development camps, attending that of the Los Angeles Kings. He scored his first AHL goal on November 25, 2017, the game-winning tally in a 3–2 victory over the Cleveland Monsters. During the 2018 Calder Cup playoffs, in game three of the first round series against the Ontario Reign, Laberge scored his first AHL playoff goal, a double-overtime game-winner.

On July 12, 2018, Laberge signed a one-year contract to return to the Stars for the 2018–19 season.

Return to professional hockey Entering the 2020–21 season, Laberge signed a standard player contract with the Adirondack Thunder of the ECHL. When the Thunder and the rest of the ECHL's North Division announced that they would not return to play due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Laberge became a free agent, and signed with the Allen Americans.

Laberge signed a one-year, two-way AHL contract with the Utica Comets on July 21, 2021. Assigned to the Thunder and named their alternate captain, he was recalled to Utica just five games into the season. After being moved up and down between the two teams for much of the season, he was informed in February 2022 that he would be staying with the Comets more permanently.

One June 21, 2022, Utica re-signed Laberge to a one-year contract. Laberge played in his first NHL preseason game on September 26, 2022, against the Montreal Canadiens in his home province of Quebec. His father was in attendance.

Laberge returned to the Comets for the 2023–24 season, signing a one-year contract on May 23, 2023. On November 18, in his second game after missing three weeks with an injury, he recorded a Gordie Howe hat trick with a goal, assist, and fight in a 6–3 victory over Laval.

Midway through the season, on November 25, Laberge signed a one-year, entry-level contract with the New Jersey Devils, the NHL affiliate of the Comets and Thunder. He made his NHL debut on November 30, in a 4–3 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers, becoming the 743rd former ECHL player to play in the NHL and the third that season. Laberge was returned to the Comets after two games, between which he totaled just over six minutes of time on ice. In 59 AHL games, he recorded six goals, 19 points, and 92 penalty minutes.

As a free agent from the Devils, on July 1, 2025, Laberge signed a one-year, two-way contract with San Jose Sharks for the season.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular seasonPlayoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 2013–14 Rimouski Océanic QMJHL 2 1 0 1 0 — — — — — 2014–15 Rimouski Océanic QMJHL 61 15 11 26 68 15 3 2 5 10 2015–16 Rimouski Océanic QMJHL 63 21 27 48 103 6 1 1 2 20 2016–17 Rimouski Océanic QMJHL 40 18 27 45 33 4 1 0 1 7 2017–18 Texas Stars AHL 66 7 8 15 81 13 1 2 3 4 2017–18 Idaho Steelheads ECHL 2 0 0 0 2 — — — — — 2018–19 Texas Stars AHL 31 1 6 7 70 — — — — — 2019–20 Sorel-Tracy Éperviers LNAH 33 16 13 29 22 — — — — — 2020–21 Allen Americans ECHL 50 15 22 37 73 5 2 3 5 8 2021–22 Utica Comets AHL 53 5 8 13 58 5 0 0 0 0 2021–22 Adirondack Thunder ECHL 12 2 8 10 24 — — — — — 2022–23 Utica Comets AHL 43 8 8 16 49 4 1 1 2 0 2023–24 Utica Comets AHL 59 6 13 19 92 — — — — — 2023–24 New Jersey Devils NHL 2 0 0 0 0 — — — — — 2024–25 Utica Comets AHL 38 3 1 4 76 — — — — — 2025–26 San Jose Barracuda AHL 9 0 1 1 27 — — — — —NHL totals 2 0 0 0 0 — — — — —

International Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM 2014 Canada Quebec U17 4th 6 0 1 1 2Junior totals 6 0 1 1 2

Awards and honours Award Year RefQMJHL Humanitarian of the Year 2016, 2017