F Macklin Celebrini (2024, 1st, SJS)

[Mattb124]

The three points almost undersells how ridiculous he was. It truly was like a veiled five point night with better linemates or without Binnington heroics.

He was just straight up better than everyone else across the entire 200' of ice. Most complete game of his young career.

People who don’t stay up late to watch Sharks games should watch that video. What I highlight reel package.

 

[karltonian]

The three points almost undersells how ridiculous he was. It truly was like a veiled five point night with better linemates or without Binnington heroics.

He was just straight up better than everyone else across the entire 200' of ice. Most complete game of his young career.

And this is just a partial sampling of the plays he made too. When the kid is going he's stringing together plays nonstop whenever he's on the ice.

 

[habsrule4eva3089]

If he keeps his rapid progression it'll he hard to leave him off the 2026 team at the Olympics.

I can see him earning a spot over Bedard as well.

 

[fasterthanlight]

Watching him is a joy. What a hockey player. Haven't seen this level of play (vibes/game control wise) from a shark forward in at least a decade. Who knows what the future holds, but hopefully he has a good/long career.

 

[Bowie22]

This kid was built in a lab or something...

 

[TheBeard]

If he keeps his rapid progression it'll he hard to leave him off the 2026 team at the Olympics.

I can see him earning a spot over Bedard as well.

I think they'll both get on because guys like Crosby are gonna hit the wall.

 

[crazynaiman]

1+1 vs Jets. As always, a sensational game by Macklin. It feels like he’s been in the NHL for years; you’d never guess he’s a rookie. He knows exactly what to do on the ice, makes confident decisions, drives the team forward, has excellent vision, elite hands, and top-tier skating.

Interesting fact: Celebrini is currently leading all first-overall picks in points-per-game pace since Patrick Kane in 2007. He's on track for 70 points, which would be the highest mark in all these years - Kane had 72, Matthews 69, and McDavid 48 (due to injury). Additionally, he's averaging 1 point per game, a feat achieved in the last 20 years only by Ovechkin, Crosby, and McDavid.

Quietly, we might be witnessing the rise of one of the most intriguing players, potentially on the level of these legends and stars. Of course, it’s still early - just 22 games is a very small sample size. But based on his play, Macklin is leaving an incredible impression, truly dominating and carrying his team. I haven’t seen a player like this since McDavid and Auston.

 

[Vasilevskiy]

I agree with y'all. Superstar player in the making. Might not peak as high as others but definition of franchise player to me

 

[matt trick]

The three points almost undersells how ridiculous he was. It truly was like a veiled five point night with better linemates or without Binnington heroics.

He was just straight up better than everyone else across the entire 200' of ice. Most complete game of his young career.

I love, love, love the play at 1:10. Moves his ass to get back to prevent 2v0, then proceeds to stick check each of the blues forwards preventing a shot on goal. He is so damn relentless! This isn't saying much but if the Sharks are giving up a 2v1 I hope it's Macklin and not a dman who's back.

He has at least 1-2 defensive plays a game where he prevents a high danger scoring chance. In some of the comparison threads there have been comments about "the underlying numbers say Celebrini is average, mediocre, or even bad defensively". If you have that opinion, there's no chance you're watching Sharks games. The Sharks get victimised with Celebrini on the ice (universally with one of Ferraro, Ceci, or Rutta also out there), but he's already above average defensively, while being a cheat code for transitioning from defense to offense.

This kid is freaking awesome!

 

[GettingYourMoms]

Shark fans sould just celebrinate, that they got such awesome young player!

 

[WhiskeyYerTheDevils]

1+1 vs Jets. As always, a sensational game by Macklin. It feels like he’s been in the NHL for years; you’d never guess he’s a rookie. He knows exactly what to do on the ice, makes confident decisions, drives the team forward, has excellent vision, elite hands, and top-tier skating.

Interesting fact: Celebrini is currently leading all first-overall picks in points-per-game pace since Patrick Kane in 2007. He's on track for 70 points, which would be the highest mark in all these years - Kane had 72, Matthews 69, and McDavid 48 (due to injury). Additionally, he's averaging 1 point per game, a feat achieved in the last 20 years only by Ovechkin, Crosby, and McDavid.

Quietly, we might be witnessing the rise of one of the most intriguing players, potentially on the level of these legends and stars. Of course, it’s still early - just 22 games is a very small sample size. But based on his play, Macklin is leaving an incredible impression, truly dominating and carrying his team. I haven’t seen a player like this since McDavid and Auston.

McDavid had 48p in 45gp in 2015 (in a lower scoring league, no less), so it's not the highest ppg since Kane.

He's going to be a great player but I don't think he has Crosby/Ovechkin/McDavid potential.

 

[coooldude]

McDavid had 48p in 45gp in 2015 (in a lower scoring league, no less), so it's not the highest ppg since Kane.

He's going to be a great player but I don't think he has Crosby/Ovechkin/McDavid potential.

Agreed. All three are all timers. Most of the very best draft picks won't have that potential in them. But he's looking like a true franchise player and that's good enough for me.