SAN JOSE – San Jose Sharks forward Macklin Celebrini still has some things to improve on as he prepares to play his first game in the National Hockey League.
One thing is proving that he deserves to be considered one of the top 300 overall players in the NHL, at least in the video game world.
Celebrini, the first player taken in the NHL Draft this past June, has an overall rating of 82 in EA Sports’ NHL 25 game, just missing the video game maker’s top 300 list. The cutoff was 84.
“Way better than I thought it would be, so, I’m happy,” Celebrini said in a promotional video for EA Sports,
Celebrini said he expected his rating to be in the 70s.
“I hope I can get this a little higher in the coming years,” Celebrini said. “But, for right now, for being a rookie, I’m pretty happy with it.”
Comparatively, last year’s No. 1 pick, Connor Bedard, is rated 88 this year, up from 83 last year.
Macklin Celebrini & Connor Bedard react to their #NHL25 rating pic.twitter.com/Tuvb73bBcB
— EA SPORTS NHL (@EASPORTSNHL) September 22, 2024
Sharks players that made the Top 300 OVR rating list include Tyler Toffoli (86), Mikael Granlund (85), Logan Couture (85) and Jake Walman (84).
Over 60 players had an overall rating, or OVR, rating of 84, including Matty Beniers of the Seattle Kraken, Matthew Knies of the Toronto Maple Leafs, and Simon Nemec of the Carolina Hurricanes.
Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid leads all NHL players with an OVR rating, fittingly, of 97. McDavid, a three-time Hart Trophy winner as the NHL’s Most Valuable Player and a five-time Art Ross Trophy winner as the league’s leading point-getter, wears No. 97.
Celebrini will play in his first career NHL preseason game on Sunday night when the Sharks host the Vegas Golden Knights at SAP Center. San Jose plays six preseason games in all, with the regular season opener on Oct. 10 at home against the St. Louis Blues.