San Jose Sharks
Sharks Locker Room: There’s Another Level for Celebrini, San Jose To Reach
We already knew that Connor McDavid was the best player in the NHL.
Think back to the 2008 Olympics, and how USA’s men’s basketball “Redeem Team”, which featured all-time greats Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Chris Paul, and Carmelo Anthony in their primes, deferred to Bryant in the fourth quarter.
In the same way, think back to the most recent Winter Olympics, and how Canada revolved around No. 1 center McDavid.
19-year-old Macklin Celebrini, one of the best players in the world, was charged with doing the top line’s dirty work and getting open for McDavid passes.
Nathan MacKinnon, also one of the best players in the world, started the Olympics as Canada’s 3C. MacKinnon would end up, along with Celebrini, flanking McDavid to form a super line.
It’s always interesting, on a team of alpha dogs, to learn who they think the clear alpha is.
But if you weren’t sure if McDavid was the best hockey player in the world, the Edmonton Oilers superstar dropped a hat trick and five points on the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday, en route to an easy 5-2 Oilers’ victory.
“He’s the best player in the league,” a frustrated Celebrini said post-game.
Tonight was a reminder that Celebrini and his many young San Jose Sharks teammates have another level to get to, before they’re discussed in quite the same breath as McDavid and the back-to-back defending Western Conference champions.
That’s no knock on Celebrini, the super-sophomore who has crafted a Hart Trophy-caliber campaign, and his teammates, who all gamely dragged the Sharks into the Western Conference playoff race.
Tonight’s loss, however, leaves San Jose three points out of the last wild card spot in the West, two teams to leapfrog, five games left. The Sharks do have one game in hand on the eighth-place Nashville Predators.
So what does Celebrini, an arguable top-five player in the world, have to do to challenge McDavid’s crown?
San Jose Sharks head coach Ryan Warsofsky wasn’t necessarily answering this question about Celebrini in comparison to McDavid, but this seems like a good place to start.
“I think Connor has a lot of patience in his game, and that doesn’t mean he just waits for the puck to come to him. He wants the puck on his stick. He demands it, but he doesn’t force and make these high, high, high-risk plays. He’s pretty direct in what he does,” Warsofsky said. “He’ll come in, he’ll delay it if it’s not there, he’ll put it back [behind] the net, knowing he’s going to get the puck back again. That’s what he does extremely well.”
That’s an essential-but-underrated skill of the best player in the world, and something that Celebrini and his teammates are still getting better at.
“[McDavid] feeds off his teammates well,” Warsofsky said. “His teammates feed off him well and what they expect, what he’s going to expect. There’s a real comfortability throughout that line-up, no matter who it is.”
McDavid was missing top forwards Leon Draisaitl and Zach Hyman, both injured, but still put up a true MVP performance. This should come with more Celebrini experience and more polished talent surrounding him.
The simplicity and directness of the Oilers’ power play, tops in the league at 30.7 percent, first three goals of the game off the PP, is something that Celebrini and the Sharks can learn from, too…and not just on the man advantage.
“You see it around the league. It’s not just Edmonton. It’s not just the power play,” Warsofsky said. “Goals are scored right now, it’s shooting the puck, creating chaos, getting it inside. It’s going off someone’s skate. It’s going off someone’s hand.”
“We need to shoot pucks,” Celebrini said. “We passed up a lot of really good chances.”
“You gotta play a simple direct hockey in the offensive zone,” Warsofsky said, “and we can’t seem to grasp that consistently enough right now.”
The Sharks managed just 14 shots tonight.
Big picture, this is no real criticism of Celebrini and the San Jose Sharks, and their surprise season. They’re still learning. Celebrini, once again, is just 19. But as McDavid and the Oilers showed tonight, there’s another level for both to get to.
Alex Nedeljkovic
Nedeljkovic, on what allows the Edmonton Oilers to be so direct on the power play:
When you have No. 97 wheeling around the ice, when he gets going, and he gets moving like that. It’s very hard to stay in any sort of structure, so ideally, I guess, you’d want to not allow them to get in that position in the first place. It might look random. It might look a little chaotic, but it looks that way because he’s allowed to skate, skate around the ice, and eventually it gets to the point where he’s now penetrating good ice. It’s not like he’s skating around the perimeter, he’s within the dots, he’s within the high slot and in prime areas where he’s a threat to shoot.
Macklin Celebrini
Sam Dickinson
Dickinson, on #SJSharks puck management tonight: "A lot of our issues came off weak, soft puck play. I know myself, that was an issue tonight. Things normally go well for us when we're playing hard, moving the puck hard, playing fast."
— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) April 9, 2026
Ryan Warsofsky
Warsofsky, on if there were any positives tonight: "I don't know if there was many positives. We got to move on."
— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) April 9, 2026
Connor McDavid
Even the national broadcast people keep pushing this narrative that Warsofsky is beating it into their heads to relax and “play free” wtf does that even mean? I heard an interview with a multiple stanly winning coach and he said that his players have a read and keys for every situation in every zone so there is a defined structure to fall back on when adversity strikes, the compete opposite of “playing free” they gave up break aways and two on ones over and over all night like they were playing pick up.
I think it means to not panic, not make unnecessary desperation plays, and not freak out. I’m keeping in mind that he’s saying this to a group of mostly young adults in their first playoff push.
I really want them to make the playoffs, but this is good enough for this season. Next season I fully expect Grier, Warso, and Celebrini do whatever is needed to take us to the playoffs!
That’s exactly what it means and any half brained monkeys ass would have easily deciphered that simple directive by now. Like I’ve said, they’re clearly stick gripping at the beginning of these games and it’s killing them early. Need to get thru this and relax and play the way they know they can.
Seems you do not play sports? Like every coach I have ever had and every team I have ever coached this has been said. Never once has it meant do not play with structure or good habits or smart or any thing of the like! It means trust in your play, trust the system, do not think, take what you are given: attack went it is there, be smart when not, do not force things… pressure and high stakes games tend to make player over think, and try to do too much or force things. Teams that punch above their… Read more »
lol! Still peddling that dumb bullshit. Dude, you’re like a broken record and your wrong with every repeat.
The Sharks looked ragged and undisciplined against Edmonton. The defense as soft as butter. No shots, no defense, no discipline, no 3rd or 4th line, no real leadership. Wennberg has been the only player I see with playmaking skills and patience. It’s been a pleasure to watch him, and Eklund seems to pair well with Sherwood. Nothing seems to be happening on the Misa and Ostapchuk lines. Whatever the allure was from Misa and his OHL performance that got him to go #2 in the draft is nowhere to be found, so far. Would love to see a breakout game… Read more »
Such a dumb, impatient comment.
Did you know that HOFer Jumbo Joe Thornton had 6 points his whole rookie season? I’m betting that’s a no? Please throw your phone in a river and cancel your internet service. You’re not good at this.
If you’re looking for a breakout game from Misa, then you havent been watching. He’s had a “breakout” game already. But expecting an 18-19 year old to look consistently solid during a playoff push at the end of the season, is wild.
The pressure right now for them in a man’s game must be insane and not something a typical teenager could handle. But next season? I expect Misa to evolve and leverage this experience to keep calm and use this to improve and become a game changer.
Let’s hope that’s true but maybe the Cuda can prepare him more. Mack & Wennberg have a lock on the first two lines at center. I have to think the 3C is up for grabs and we’ll see what the GM can come up with in the off season.
Misa has 7 goals, 10 assists this injury-shortened rookie season. Prorating that for a full 82 game season, he would have 14 goals 20 assists. That would pretty solid for a rookie playing 3rd line center and handling some real defensive responsibilities.
Just because a 18 year old rookie isn’t Schaefer doesn’t mean he is some kind of disappointment.
And look who they pair him with, Toffoli? Tonight Delandrea? He has yet to play with any really skilled players. Once in a while he gets to play with Graf, but never Mac or Wennberg. When he plays with better players he will shine
The whole idea was to have 3 solid lines when they drafted him. He was never going to play with Mack or Wennberg. They were hoping he would be a 2C but now that Wennberg has upped his game, 3C is the best he can hope for. I don’t see any great playmaking talent there. Maybe he can up his game with the Cuda next season.
No matter where they slot him, he needs to play with better players. Look at Smith, he was crap until he played with Mac, and still can’t score without him. He was also supposed to center, but they gave up that idea, yet he’s considered better than Misa? No way
but nothing like what was expected from him given his numbers and draft #. I’m hoping he develops into a useful 3C, but after tonight’s game, I don’t see it. Sharks are done and dusted.