SAN JOSE – The San Jose Sharks have signed center Macklin Celebrini, the first-overall selection in the 2024 NHL Draft, to a three-year, entry-level contract, starting a new era for the franchise.
“Macklin is not only a special player on the ice, but he is a poised, confident, and intelligent young man off of it,” San Jose Sharks general manager Mike Grier said in a statement. “His combination of skills and hockey sense is rare, and we are extremely confident that he is ready to make the transition to being a full-time NHL player.
“We could not be more excited to have Macklin locked in to formally join the Sharks organization for the 2024-25 season.”
The announcement Saturday ended any speculation that Celebrini, this past season’s Hobey Baker Award winner, might return to Boston University for his sophomore season. Celebrini, 18, played in 38 games for Boston University and had 64 points (32 goals, 32 assists) with a plus-25 rating.
As a freshman, Celebrini finished second in the NCAA in points-per-game (1.68, trailing only current teammate Will Smith at 1.73), ranked second in goals, and was third in points.
Celebrini mentioned earlier this week that he would announce his decision shortly after the team’s development camp, which ended Thursday.
All indications were that Celebrini was ready to turn pro, as his work and maturity on and off the ice left a positive impression on everyone he met inside the Sharks organization.
“The first thing that I noticed is that he wants to be first in everything,” said Sharks’ director of development Todd Marchant on Thursday. “He’s leading his group right away. He’s first in line. Then you see him on the ice, and he’s first in the drills.
“Those things you don’t teach. I can’t go to a player and say, ‘Hey, you should be first in line.’ They just instinctively have that, right?”
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