- Macklin Celebrini set the Sharks single-season record with 115 points in his age-19 year
- The 2024 No. 1 pick is eligible to sign on July 1 and told reporters he wants to stay
- Read below for his exit interview and video of the record-breaking moment
Macklin Celebrini has already settled the big question about his future in San Jose before his agent even opens negotiations.
“I want to commit to this team and (be) here,” the 19-year-old center said Saturday. “I love it here.”
Celebrini told reporters he is open to every possibility when it comes to his next contract with the Sharks. His entry-level deal runs through next season, and he becomes eligible to sign an extension on July 1.
“The season just ended, and I haven’t really thought about anything like that,” Celebrini said. “I’m just open to whatever happens. There’s a lot of stuff that goes into it.”
He closed the year with 115 points on 45 goals and 70 assists, passing Joe Thornton’s franchise mark in the regular season finale against Winnipeg. He played all 82 games and carried a young core that pushed San Jose back toward relevance.
The Sharks finished with 36 wins and 86 points, up from last season’s NHL lows of 20 wins and 52 points. They missed the playoffs for a seventh straight year, but sat only four points behind Los Angeles for the second wild card in the Western Conference.
When he signs will matter too. Under the new collective bargaining agreement that kicks in before next season, players who re-sign with their current team can still lock in eight years until Sept. 18. After that date, the maximum drops to seven.
Celebrini said he has talked with Connor Bedard about the Blackhawks star’s own situation. Bedard, the No. 1 pick in 2023, has yet to sign an extension and can become a restricted free agent on July 1 as well.
Video from the record-breaking night shows what San Jose is trying to lock up. In three NHL seasons, Celebrini has 178 points in 152 games, per NHL.com.
San Jose will want to get a deal done before the CBA clock runs out, and Celebrini has removed the one variable the Sharks cannot control. The dollars and years are still a blank page, but the destination is not.
