The San Jose Sharks are certainly on cloud nine right now. San Jose won the 2024 NHL Draft Lottery on Tuesday night. As a result, they have the first chance at picking star prospect Macklin Celebrini in the 2024 NHL Draft. Tuesday's news has sent fans into a frenzy. And it unearthed some high praise from Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green.
Green was featured in a TSN story about the Celebrini family in January. Macklin's father, Rick, is the director of sports medicine and development for the Warriors. During his interview, the Michigan native shared some rather astonishing praise for the presumptive top NHL Draft pick.
“Rick's working on me and I'm like, ‘Hey Rick, when we go to Chicago, any chance Mack's got a game?' He starts checking the schedule, and he does. So, I'm like ‘Great, I'm going,'” Draymond Green said, via TSN. “Mack didn't have his best game. But I'm an athlete and like you know when somebody's got it. You know who got it, and he just got it. I got a chance to see a generational talent play.”
Macklin Celebrini was the star of the 2024 NHL Draft Lottery
Macklin Celebrini didn't only wow Draymond Green on the ice. He has been an absolute star for the last two seasons. Green saw the potential Sharks cornerstone during the 2022-23 season when he played for the Chicago Steel of the USHL. And the Vancouver native turned in an incredible performance. He scored 46 goals and 86 points in just 50 games.
Celebrini committed to Boston University for the 2023-24 season. And he continued to outclass his peers. The Boston University star scored 32 goals and 64 points in 38 games this year. He helped Boston University into the Frozen Four tournament, where they lost to Denver in the semifinals.
Celebrini was certainly recognized for his efforts, though. He received the Hobey Baker Award as the best men's college hockey player of the season. As a result, he became the youngest player to win the award. And he was the first Boston University star to win it since Jack Eichel in 2015.
Sharks building an impressive foundation
If Draymond Green wishes to continue following Macklin Celebrini, he will see one of the most promising young teams in the league. The Sharks have built an impressive foundation of prospects already. Some of them may not make the NHL for a few years. But San Jose certainly has talent waiting in the wings.
Just last season, the Sharks received the third pick through the NHL Draft Lottery. With that pick, they selected American center Will Smith. Smith was a star at the US National Team Development Program during his draft year. In 2023-24, he dominated college hockey at Boston College. He scored 25 goals and 71 points in 41 games to help the Eagles make the National Championship Game.
Another player of note is David Edstrom. Edstrom was a first-round pick in 2023 of the Vegas Golden Knights. On March 8, the Sharks acquired Edstrom as part of the Tomas Hertl trade. The Swedish center played professional hockey in Sweden this season. He scored seven goals and 19 points in 44 games as a 19-year-old in the SHL.
The Sharks certainly have a bright future ahead of them. In the 2024 NHL Draft Lottery, though, they may have received their franchise cornerstone. San Jose fans should start doing their homework on Macklin Celebrini before the 2024 NHL Draft in late June.
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