After months of speculation, the San Jose Sharks officially unveiled Macklin Celebrini as their new captain heading into the 2026-27 season.
Celebrini, at the age of 20 years and 104 days old, has surpassed Connor Bedard as the sixth-youngest permanent captain in NHL history. He is also the Sharks' 11th full-time captain.
The Sharks made the announcement with a video showing franchise legend Joe Thornton presenting Celebrini with the captaincy at a team meeting.
"Your hard work, the way you lead our group. Just watching you in training camp, going double shifts there. You're pushing the group, so this is a well-deserved honor," Sharks General Manager Mike Grier said in the video.
Celebrini has already established himself as one of the best players to ever take the ice in San Jose, breaking the franchise record for most points in a season in just his second year in the NHL. As a result, it seemed that the captaincy was inevitable.
As the sixth-youngest captain, Celebrini joins some of hockey's greats at the top of the list. The youngest ever captain was Connor McDavid followed by Gabriel Landeskog, Sidney Crosby, Vincent Lecavalier, and Jonathan Toews.
Celebrini, Grier, and head coach Ryan Warsofsky are set to meet with the media later this afternoon to discuss the captaincy and why they felt like now was the right time.
