Sharks Name Macklin Celebrini Captain

The San Jose Sharks named Macklin Celebrini their captain on September 25, with former Sharks captain Joe Thornton presenting the 20-year-old forward with a jersey bearing the captain’s C. The team’s announcement makes Celebrini the youngest captain in franchise history, according to reports, and follows a record-setting season in which he led the Sharks in scoring. A video shared by the team showed Thornton presenting the jersey to Celebrini in front of his teammates. The appointment comes ahead of the 2026-27 NHL season. Celebrini is the first Sharks captain since Logan Couture, whose retirement was announced in April 2025, though accounts differ on when his captaincy ended. Celebrini scored 115 points, including 45 goals and 70 assists, in 82 games last season. That total set a Sharks single-season record, surpassing Thornton’s 114 points in 2006-07. Celebrini was in his second NHL season after San Jose selected him first overall in the 2024 draft. He finished fourth in voting for the Hart Trophy, awarded to the league’s most valuable player. His scoring marked a significant increase from his rookie season, when he recorded 25 goals and 63 points in 70 games.