After the Philadelphia Flyers offered Anaheim's Leo Carlsson an offer sheet and forced the Ducks to match an $18 million AAV deal, making him the highest-paid player in hockey, it felt inevitable that the San Jose Sharks would eventually top it with Macklin Celebrini.
Following a season where Celebrini finished fourth in both league scoring and Hart Trophy voting, the Sharks made sure their franchise player stayed put. On Wednesday morning, San Jose announced a five-year extension worth $18.8 million annually, making the 20-year-old the highest-paid player in the NHL, starting next season.
Celebrini earned just $975,000 last season, making this the largest jump in average annual value in league history, but it's hardly a surprise.
The Right Investment
The San Jose Sharks finished just four points out of a playoff spot last season, but the future is bright.
Macklin Celebrini is now locked up, and San Jose has also beefed up their roster by adding Mason Marchment, 2026 No. 2 overall pick Ivar Stenberg, Darnell Nurse, Michael Kesselring, and Jacob Trouba.
The club also still has Logan Couture's $8 million cap hit headed to LTIR for the 2026-27 season and enters the year with roughly $7.5 million in cap space. After finishing with 86 points in an 82-game season, the move to an 84-game schedule pushes San Jose's implied projection into the 94-96 point range, per its O/U point markets.
There is a legitimate path for the Sharks to leapfrog the Kings and/or Ducks in the Pacific Division, and a third-place finish in the division is a realistic goal with a roster that is significantly stronger than last season's group.
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Sharks Futures for 2026/27
| Market |  |
|---|---|
 San Jose to make the playoffs |
-130 |
| San Jose to finish first in the Pacific Division |
+850 |
| San Jose to win the Stanley Cup |
+3500 |
Hart Hopeful
Celebrini finished with 56 more points than teammate Will Smith, who was second on the club with 59. He played all 82 games and even received five first-place Hart Trophy votes. There was a legitimate argument that no player meant more to his team than Celebrini as the Sharks blew past preseason expectations.
The former first-overall pick scored 63 points as a rookie before exploding for 115 last season, cementing himself as one of the biggest stars in hockey. He has entered the Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid tier of hype, and Celebrini's Gold Outburst Young Guns 1-of-1 rookie card was recently pulled and valued at more than $600,000.
There is also a reason he captained Team Canada at the World Championship this spring while Crosby wore the "A." Celebrini has quickly become the new face of hockey, and he can still get better entering his age-20 season.
Betting Outlook
Celebrini is currently priced at +650 in the Hart Trophy odds, trailing only Connor McDavid (+250) and Nathan MacKinnon (+350).
Beating those two won't be easy in a non-Olympic season after one of the busiest schedules in recent NHL history, but with potential linemate upgrades and an improved power play that won't have to feature Dmitry Orlov, Celebrini should be firmly in the MVP conversation all season.
I'll be waiting for the Art Ross markets to open, as the Sharks star has a legitimate chance to lead the league in scoring. Additionally, after finishing tied for fourth with 45 goals last season, the Rocket Richard odds are another market I'll be watching closely.
It's hard to call any Celebrini future a bad bet right now.
