As the youngest of three hockey-playing brothers, by the time Paulin Bordeleau had reached the major junior level he was certainly receiving additional attention from pro scouts, who wanted to see if he was as good, or perhaps even better, than his siblings Christian and J.P. He began his major junior career in Montreal, like his brothers and helped the team advance to the Memorial Cup in 1970. He then played three years with the Toronto Marlboros and in 1972-73 led the team with 54 goals while finishing fourth in scoring with 97 points. The powerhouse Marlies, also led by the likes of Wayne Dillon, Mark Howe, Bruce Boudreau and goalie Mike Palmateer went on to win the Memorial Cup as the top amateur junior team in Canada, thrashing the Quebec Remparts 9-1 in the final.
Bordeleau, like his brothers, was not big physically, which was a concern to NHL scouts, but he was selected in the second round, 19th overall by the Vancouver Canucks in the 1973 NHL Amateur Draft. He had a strong training camp and made the team roster as a 20-year-old rookie and was with the team for three years.
In 1976 he was lured to the WHA with a large contract offer from the Quebec Nordiques. The constant losing in Vancouver made it somewhat easier to say goodbye as well. There was added motivation in it for Bordeleau, who had the opportunity to play with his brother Christian and the pair helped Quebec to win the Avco Cup in the spring of 1977. At the time brother J.P. was playing in the NHL with the Chicago Blackhawks. Like his brother Christian, Paulin stayed with the Nordiques until the demise of the WHA after the 1978-79 season. Rather than return to the NHL, Bordeleau decided to move to France, where he played for eight years and was a member of the 1988 French Olympic Team that competed in Calgary.
Immediately after retiring from hockey as a player in 1988, Bordeleau got behind the bench, coaching the QMJHL's Laval Titan for two years. He also made stops in Halifax and Fredericton of the AHL and was a member of the Tampa Bay Lightning management team in 1998-99. He then coached the IHL's Detroit Vipers in 1999-00 before the league disbanded.
