After a ancient NHL debut, Macklin Celebrini merely hopes to be at the ice when the San Jose Sharks host the Anaheim Geese on Saturday evening.
Celebrini, the No. 1 general pick out by way of the Sharks within the 2024 NHL Draft, had a function and an help in opposition to the visiting St. Louis Blues on Thursday evening, however San Jose blew a 4-1 third-period lead and misplaced 5-4 in additional time.
Celebrini is coping with a lower-body harm and neglected observe on Friday. He’s indexed as questionable for Saturday’s recreation.
Sharks trainer Ryan Warsofsky used to be non-committal over whether or not Celebrini can be at the ice in opposition to Anaheim.
“He is nonetheless being evaluated … so, I could not resolution that query,” Warsofsky mentioned.
Celebrini scored 7:01 into the sport, the second-fastest function by way of a No. 1 pick out at the back of Mario Lemieux, who scored 2:59 into his debut with the Pittsburgh Penguins on Oct. 11, 1984, in opposition to the Boston Bruins.
Later within the era, Celebrini arrange Tyler Toffoli for a function, changing into the youngest participant in NHL historical past (18 years, 119 days) to file two issues within the first era of his debut.
Shane Doan held the former mark at 18 years, 362 days with the Winnipeg Jets in 1995.
“He is fantastic, an out of this world ability, works extraordinarily arduous,” Toffoli mentioned. “On the finish of the day, he needs to win video games, too, and he will do no matter it takes.”
San Jose will have to have higher odds in opposition to the Geese, the general NHL crew to make their season debut after the Washington Capitals make theirs a couple of hours previous on Saturday.
Anaheim may be seeking to whole a rebuilding segment that has saved it out of the playoffs the previous six seasons.
The Geese have stocked their roster with a number of prime draft selections, led by way of Leo Carlsson, the second one general pick out within the 2023 NHL Draft.
Mason McTavish went 1/3 general in 2021, Cutter Gauthier went 5th in 2022 and fellow ahead Trevor Zegras went 9th in 2019.
Zegras can be counted on maximum for a bounce-back season.
He neglected maximum of coaching camp final season whilst a brand new contract used to be being negotiated, then neglected 20 video games after maintaining a lower-body harm in mid-November.
Zegras returned for 8 video games, simplest to endure a damaged ankle on Jan. 9 that price him any other 2 1/2 months. He in the end performed simply 31 video games, tallying six targets and 9 assists, a large drop-off after scoring 23 targets in every of the former two seasons.
“He is at that candy spot,” Geese trainer Greg Cronin mentioned of Zegras’s profession. “He is 23. The overall consensus is that an athlete is what he will be between 23 and 26.”
Cronin mentioned Zegras has the talent, arms and shot-making talent to be one of the vital most sensible avid gamers within the league.
“That is his core at this time; that is what his worth machine is,” Cronin mentioned. “That is what he demonstrates, so when he is going out to play a recreation, he needs to reveal to his teammates and to the lovers, ‘I am this sort of participant.'”
Defensively, the Geese even have some extremely touted younger avid gamers, led by way of Pavel Mintyukov, the tenth general pick out in 2022. Fellow blueliners Olen Zellweger, 21, and Tristan Luneau, 20, additionally made the opening-night roster.
Luneau made the crew out of coaching camp final season, too, however in December, an an infection in his knee price him the remainder of the season.
“Tristan is in a procedure of having timing, recreation velocity and decision-making constructed (again) into his DNA,” Cronin mentioned. “A child who used to be out lots of the yr simply wishes revel in.”
–Box Stage Media
