Macklin Celebrini Shines in Historic NHL Debut, Heralding a Promising Future for San Jose Sharks

Thursday, October 10th, 2024

In his debut game for the San Jose Sharks, Macklin Celebrini quickly made an impression by scoring the team's first goal of the season and contributing an assist during the first period. However, the game ended in an overtime loss.

The crowd was energized by Celebrini's initial goal, which, aided by Matt Kessel's skate, turned out to be quite fortuitous, prompting chants of his name. At 18 years old, he became the sixth-youngest player to score in an NHL debut, a record not seen since Aleksander Barkov in 2013.

Later in the initial period, Celebrini also assisted Tyler Toffoli, placing him alongside Auston Matthews as one of the few top picks to earn multiple points in their NHL debut's first period. He stands as the third-youngest player to achieve a multi-point game debut, following Nathan MacKinnon and Bobby Carpenter.

This game also marked the debut for both Celebrini and Will Smith, the first time in nearly 26 years that the Sharks featured two teenagers in their lineup. Previously a successful franchise, the Sharks have missed the playoffs for the past five seasons, but the introduction of Celebrini and Smith has given the fan base renewed optimism.

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