Macklin Celebrini

Macklin Celebrini
Celebrini with the San Jose Sharks in January 2025
Born (2006-06-13) June 13, 2006
North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 190 lb (86 kg; 13 st 8 lb)
Position Centre
Shoots Left
NHL team San Jose Sharks
National team  Canada
NHL draft 1st overall, 2024
San Jose Sharks
Playing career 2024–present

Macklin Richard Celebrini (born June 13, 2006) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player who is a centre and alternate captain for the San Jose Sharks of the National Hockey League (NHL). Selected first overall by the Sharks in the 2024 NHL entry draft, Celebrini made his NHL debut in the 2024–25 NHL season and was a finalist for the Calder Memorial Trophy.

Playing college ice hockey for the Boston University Terriers, Celebrini won the Hobey Baker Award during his freshman season, becoming the youngest player to do so.

Internationally, Celebrini has represented Canada multiple times, including the 2024 World Junior Championships, the 2025 IIHF World Championship, as well as the 2026 Winter Olympics, becoming the youngest NHL player to play for Canada at the Olympics.

Early and personal life

Macklin Richard Celebrini was born on June 13, 2006, in North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, to Robyn and Rick Celebrini.[1] Rick was a soccer player for the Vancouver 86ers and a former physiotherapist for the Vancouver Whitecaps FC, he was later hired by the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA) as their director of sports medicine and performance.[2] Celebrini grew up a fan of the Vancouver Canucks, his hometown team.[3]

Celebrini is the second of four children: He has an older brother, Aiden, who was drafted by the Vancouver Canucks in the sixth round of the 2023 NHL entry draft. The two brothers played together for the 2023–24 college season.[4][5] He also has two younger siblings: a brother, RJ, and a sister, Charlie.[6]

Celebrini is of Croatian descent through his paternal grandfather, Anton Celebrini, who was born in Porat, a village on the island of Krk.[7][8]

Celebrini currently lives with former San Jose Sharks captain Joe Thornton.[9][10]

Playing career

Amateur

Celebrini played minor hockey in Vancouver with the North Shore Winter Club before the family moved to San Jose, where he would spend the 2019–20 season with the San Jose Jr Sharks program.[11][12][5] Following a season with the Shattuck-Saint Mary's School, where he would score 50 goals and 67 assists in 52 games, he signed with the Chicago Steel of the United States Hockey League (USHL) for the 2022–23 USHL season, where he would score 86 points, leading the USHL and breaking the record for most points ever by an under-17 player in USHL history.[13][14] After helping the Steel reach the USHL's Eastern Conference Finals, Celebrini was named Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year, and Forward of the Year, becoming the second USHL player to win all three awards, and the first to do so in a single season.[14] Celebrini was also named to the All-USHL and All-Rookie first teams.[15][16]

Celebrini committed to play for Boston University starting in the 2023–24 season, playing alongside his older brother Aiden.[3][5] During his freshman year he recorded 32 goals and 64 points in just 38 games, winning Hockey East Player of the Year, Hockey East Rookie of the Year, Hockey East Scoring Champion, and the Hockey East Three-Stars Award. Celebrini would also win the Hobey Baker Award, becoming the youngest player to win the award and the fourth freshman to do so, following Paul Kariya in 1993, Jack Eichel in 2015 and Adam Fantilli in 2023.[17][18]

Professional

Celebrini was drafted first overall in the 2024 NHL entry draft by the San Jose Sharks, signing a three-year entry-level contract with the Sharks on July 6.[19][20] He made his NHL debut on October 10, scoring his first goal and assist in a 5–4 overtime loss to the St. Louis Blues.[21] Celebrini led all NHL forwards in puck battle wins per game in the first half of the 2024–25 season.[22]

On April 9, 2025, in a game against the Minnesota Wild, Celebrini scored his first NHL hat-trick, becoming the first rookie to do so in the 2024–25 season.[23] Playing in 70 games, Celebrini finished the season with 25 goals, second most among rookies behind Matvei Michkov, and 63 points, tying with for second place with Michkov, behind Lane Hutson. Celebrini was a finalist for the Calder Memorial Trophy, awarded to NHL's best rookie, and was named to the league's All-Rookie Team.[24][25]

Celebrini temporarily became the NHL's leading scorer during the start of the 2025–26 season, scoring 23 points in the first 15 games, the third player to reach this achievement after Wayne Gretzky and Steve Yzerman.[26] Celebrini got a hat-trick and two assists in a five-point night against the New York Rangers, and a hat-trick against the Utah Mammoth in a 3–2 win less than a month later.[27][28]

International play

Medal record
Men's ice hockey
Representing  Canada
Winter Olympics
2026 Milano Cortina
World U18 Championships
2023 Switzerland

Celebrini made his international debut for Canada with the under-17 team in the 2022 World U-17 Hockey Challenge.[29] The following year, he was named to the under-18 team for the 2023 World U18 Championships, where he would score the bronze medal-winning goal against Slovakia in overtime.[30][31][32] Celebrini later played with the junior team at the 2024 World Junior Championships, leading the team in scoring with four goals and four assists.[33]

Following the conclusion of his debut collegiate season, Celebrini accepted an invitation to make his senior team debut at the 2024 World Championship, but was dropped from the roster following the addition of NHL players whose teams were eliminated in the first round of the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs.[34][35] He would make his debut the following year at the 2025 World Championship, recording three goals and three assists for a total of six points in eight games for Canada.[36]

Celebrini was invited to Hockey Canada's 2025 National Teams Orientation Camp in anticipation of the 2026 Winter Olympics as the youngest player to be considered for the senior team at the time.[37] On December 31, 2025, Celebrini was named to Canada's roster for the Winter Olympics, making him the youngest-ever NHL player on the Canadian men's Olympic team.[38][39] In Milan, he opened the scoring for Canada in a 5–0 win over the Czech Republic, surpassing Jonathan Toews to become the youngest Canadian NHL player to score an Olympic goal.[40] Celebrini assumed a key role for Canada in the tournament, playing on the team's top line alongside Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon. He had the most ice-time of any Canadian player in its 3–2 comeback victory over Finland in the semifinal round.[41][42][43] Canada was ultimately defeated by the United States in the final, receiving the silver medal.[44] Celebrini was named to the Olympic All-Star Team.[45]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2021–22 Shattuck-Saint Mary's Midget AAA 52 50 67 117 44 11 8 12 20 12
2022–23 Chicago Steel USHL 50 46 40 86 62 2 0 0 0 2
2023–24 Boston University HE 38 32 32 64 18 — — — — —
2024–25 San Jose Sharks NHL 70 25 38 63 28 — — — — —
NHL totals 70 25 38 63 28 — — — — —

International

Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2022 Canada Black U17 4th 4 1 1 2 0
2023 Canada U18 7 6 9 15 6
2024 Canada WJC 5th 5 4 4 8 0
2025 Canada WC 5th 8 3 3 6 0
2026 Canada OG 6 5 5 10 4
Junior totals 16 11 14 25 6
Senior totals 14 8 8 16 4

Awards and honours

Award Year Ref
USHL
USHL Player of the Year 2023 [14]
USHL Rookie of the Year 2023 [14]
USHL Forward of the Year 2023 [14]
All-USHL First Team 2023 [15]
USHL All-Rookie First Team 2023 [16]
College
All-Hockey East First Team 2024 [46]
Hockey East All-Rookie Team 2024 [47]
Hockey East Scoring Champion 2024 [17]
Hockey East Three-Stars Award 2024 [17]
Hockey East Rookie of the Year 2024 [17]
Hockey East Player of the Year 2024 [17]
Tim Taylor Award 2024 [48]
Hobey Baker Award 2024 [49]
AHCA East First Team All-American 2024 [50]
NHL
NHL All-Rookie Team 2025 [24]
International
Winter Olympics All-Star Team 2026 [45]

References

  1. ^ "Celebrini thriving for Team Canada in 1st Olympics at 19 | NHL.com". www.nhl.com. February 18, 2026. Retrieved March 17, 2026.
  2. ^ Johnston, Patrick (April 29, 2023). "2024's likely No. 1 overall NHL draft pick wants to be a Canuck". The Province. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
  3. ^ a b Pronman, Corey. "Top 2024 NHL Draft prospect Macklin Celebrini commits to Boston University: Source". The Athletic. Archived from the original on January 24, 2023. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
  4. ^ Drance, Thomas (November 2, 2023). "How NBA superstars showed the NHL's next top prospect the way". The Athletic. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  5. ^ a b c Clark, Ryan (June 28, 2024). "Macklin Celebrini's family-centered journey to the top of the 2024 NHL draft class". ESPN. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  6. ^ Smith, Joe (October 30, 2025). "Next face of the NHL? Macklin Celebrini's family, friends, teammates on why he'll live up to the hype". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 23, 2026.
  7. ^ Tolić, Josip (February 20, 2026). "Novi 'hrvatski' superstar osvaja hokejaški svijet: Djed je s Krka, ruši rekorde na Zimskim igrama". 24sata.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved February 22, 2026.
  8. ^ Kuzma, Ben (June 24, 2024). "B.C.'s Rick Celebrini is physiotherapist to the stars, but his best work is raising four prolific young athletes". The Province. Archived from the original on June 25, 2024. Retrieved March 8, 2026.
  9. ^ "Celebrini says living with Thornton will be 'perfect situation' as Sharks rookie". NHL.com. September 10, 2024. Retrieved December 13, 2024.
  10. ^ Smith, Joe (October 30, 2025). "Next face of the NHL? Macklin Celebrini's family, friends, teammates on why he'll live up to the hype". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 23, 2026.
  11. ^ "How Brent Burns convinced the Celebrini family that San Jose was ok". Mercury News. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
  12. ^ Ewen, Steve (March 22, 2024). "NHL Draft: Would Macklin Celebrini buzz be even greater if he wasn't following Connor Bedard?". The Province. Retrieved November 29, 2025.
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  16. ^ a b "USHL All-Rookie Teams Announced". USHL. May 1, 2023. Retrieved August 28, 2023.
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  20. ^ Morreale, Mike G. (June 28, 2024). "Celebrini selected No. 1 by Sharks in 2024 NHL Draft". NHL.com. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
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  42. ^ Heyen, Bill (February 20, 2026). "The way Team Canada used Macklin Celebrini in Olympic semifinal shows hockey world everything". The Sporting News. Retrieved February 22, 2026.
  43. ^ Bourne, Justin; Bukkala, Jason (February 20, 2026). "Why Macklin Celebrini is already a Team Canada superstar". Sportsnet. Retrieved February 22, 2026.
  44. ^ Clipperton, Joshua (February 22, 2026). "Jack Hughes delivers golden goal as U.S. beats Canada in dramatic OT". CBC Sports. Retrieved February 22, 2026.
  45. ^ a b "McDavid named MVP, All-Star and Best Forward". IIHF. February 22, 2026. Retrieved February 22, 2026.
  46. ^ "HOCKEY EAST NAMES 2023–24 MEN'S ALL-STAR TEAMS". Hockey East. March 15, 2024. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
  47. ^ "HOCKEY EAST NAMES 2023–24 PRO AMBITIONS ALL-ROOKIE TEAM". Hockey East. March 13, 2023. Retrieved March 18, 2023.
  48. ^ "Boston University's Macklin Celebrini Is 2024 Tim Taylor National Rookie Of The Year". hockeycommissioners.com. April 12, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
  49. ^ Lerch, Chris (April 12, 2024). "Boston University's Celebrini becomes youngest Hobey Baker Award winner". uscho.com. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
  50. ^ "Top 25 men's college hockey players earn distinction as CCM/AHCA Hockey All-Americans for 2023–24 season". USCHO.com. April 12, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
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