The San Jose Sharks enjoyed the most successful season the franchise has had in a while as they just narrowly missed out on a playoff berth posting a 39-35-8 record with 86 points. This comes after back to back last place finishes leading into this past season.
The centerpiece behind this improvement in form was the play of 19 year old phenom Macklin Celebrini up front. Celebrini amassed 40 goals and 75 assists for 115 points in 82 games. He passed Sharks legend Joe Thornton for the most productive season in the history of the organization.
The big story to watch for the Sharks this summer is to see what happens with Celebrini’s next deal. While Macklin still has a year left on his entry level contract, he is eligible to extend as early as this offseason.
Extending this summer would be a smart move for Celebrini, coming off of a breakout season that has seen him mentioned in the Hart trophy conversation. When asked about this possibility, Celebrini expressed interest in his desire to resign in San Jose. Via beat reporter Max Miller, Celebrini stated: “I want to commit to this team and being here, and I love it here. I’m just open to whatever happens.”
Macklin Celebrini Primed to Receive a Rich Contract Extension
After the career best season Celebrini enjoyed this year, he has set himself up for what should be a massive contract extension. As the Sharks franchise player and likely future captain that the team looks to build around, he will be able to command a rich payday.
To put Celebrini’s 25-26 season in perspective, only three players in the entire NHL recorded more points than him. Those players are Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon and Nikita Kucherov. What do all of them have in common? They have won the Hart trophy as the league’s MVP in their respective career’s. Celebrini looks primed to win the award himself one day.
And he did all this in just his second season in the NHL on a team in San Jose that is still in the middle of a rebuilding phase. As an example of how large the gap between Celebrini and the rest of his squad was: 66 points separated him from the team’s second leading scorer Will Smith, who registered 59 points.
This is not to mention Celebrini’s play outside of the NHL level with the fact he earned himself a position on Team Canada in the 2026 Winter Olympics. The teenager impressed in the tourney as he recorded five goals and five assists in six games as Canada came up short to USA for gold.
The Future is Bright in San Jose
With Celebrini leading the charge up top, the Sharks have been drafting promising pieces to surround him with in order to create what should be a dangerous group sooner rather than later. Smith, William Eklund, Michael Misa and Igor Chernyshov should provide San Jose with plenty of firepower in the offensive rotation moving forward. Scoring goals will not be an issue for this club.
With the steps Celebrini and the Sharks have taken over these past couple seasons, playoff hockey should not be a far off target for this squad. They made a 34 point jump this past year in the standings after a measly 52 point campaign in 24-25. If they can take another leap forward in 26-27, this team will be in the playoff race.
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