Macklin Celebrini might be the only one on the San Jose Sharks not excited to talk about his remarkable season that has the 19-year-old accomplishing feats only some of the greatest players ever have done at his age.
Celebrini delivered another signature performance on Tuesday night when he completed his third career hat trick with an overtime goal that gave the Sharks a 3-2 victory over the visiting Utah Mammoth and put Celebrini in elite company.
The three goals gave Celebrini 30 points in his team’s first 20 games of a season, a mark reached only by two other teenagers in NHL history with Wayne Gretzky doing it in 1980-81 and Sidney Crosby in 2006-07. Mario Lemieux also did it in his first 20 games in 1984-85 but he missed seven games during that stretch.
“It’s cool, but that’s the first time I’m hearing about it,” Celebrini said, quickly trying to dismiss any comparison to those legends. “I don’t really want to hear about that. That’s not what’s important.”
Celebrini’s teammates have no hesitation talking about the impact he has made on the franchise since being picked first overall in the 2024 draft. Celebrini had 25 goals and 38 assists as an 18-year-old rookie but has taken his game to new heights so far this season with 13 goals and 17 assists.
“Special. He’s special,” said defenceman Vincent Desharnais, who has played with Connor McDavid and Crosby in his career. “I think everyone in here, everyone in this building sees how special he is as a player, as a human being as well. He’s not a [jerk] and walking around and saying that he’s the best player.
“He always wants to get better every day. I’m sure next skate he’s going to be one of the first guys on the ice to work on something else. So, it’s impressive to see and it kind of inspires everyone.”
Celebrini has provided reason for optimism for a Sharks franchise that had the worst record in the NHL in each of the past two seasons and hasn’t made the playoffs since the 2018-19 campaign.
He is part of a young core that features several promising players with more in the pipeline who are expected to be the building blocks for a contender in the coming years.
The two main pieces of that rebuild right now are Celebrini and linemate Will Smith, the No. 4 overall pick in 2023. The 20-year-old Smith has seven goals and 11 assists with the latest coming on a deft cross-ice pass that set up Celebrini’s first goal of the night less than two minutes into the game.
“Those guys obviously you see the chemistry,” head coach Ryan Warsofsky said. “They can make things happen. I still think there’s another level to be honest they can both get to within their game. Not just the points and the goals, the assists. For us to win consistently and really go on and really start building this thing, we have to have an understanding how we need to play the game and winning habits and what it looks like.”
Warsofsky said what sets Celebrini apart from other young stars is his “hockey sense.” That’s a trait he often sees lacking as players spend so much time working on their skills that they neglect that aspect of the game.
That has helped Celebrini become an instant leader on the team despite his age as he earned the title of alternate captain this season and is being groomed to wear the “C” on his sweater soon.
His play has helped the Sharks rebound from a six-game winless streak to open the season with nine wins in their last 14 games that has them at least in range of a playoff spot after winning just 39 games combined the past two seasons.
San Jose has shown more resiliency this season, evidenced by the response in overtime after blowing a two-goal lead in the third period against Utah.
“Coming into this year all of us want to take that next step as a team,” Celebrini said. “This is a game we probably would have lost last year. So I think just showing the steps we are taking.”
