Preview/Lines #71: Celebrini on Hanging Out With Burns, Lund To Make NHL Debut

For Macklin Celebrini, last Wednesday was pretty memorable.

The Carolina Hurricanes’ Brent Burns and Frederik Andersen came over to Joe Thornton’s house for dinner. Celebrini, of course, is living with Thornton. Thornton and Burns were long-time teammates on the San Jose Sharks, and Thornton and Andersen were on the Toronto Maple Leafs together.

“It’s the first time I got to talk to him,” Celebrini said of Burns, perhaps a surprise considering the connections between them.

Famously, Burns recommended the Jr. Sharks program to Celebrini’s dad, sports performance guru Rick Celebrini, in the summer of 2018, when both the Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs were courting him. Rick Celebrini chose the Warriors, in part because he wanted sons Aiden and Macklin to be able to continue their hockey careers close to the family. The rest is history.

Burns had previously worked with Rick Celebrini, but Macklin had no recollection of meeting Burns as a kid.

“It was awesome,” Celebrini said of hanging out with the bearded legends on Wednesday. “It’s just awesome to hear their stories and times together.”

“It was fun to hang out and chat and talk about the old times. I’m sure he was thinking, ‘What is going on with these two old guys here?’” 40-year-old Brent Burns quipped about the 18-year-old. “We need him to bring the average age down.”

So tired? Will the 2024 first-overall pick have a Hall of Fame career like Burns and Thornton?

Wired: Will Celebrini ever be able to grow a beard like Burnzie and Jumbo?

“No, I don’t think I’m ever gonna be able to grow a beard like that,” Celebrini laughed.

Doesn’t run in the family?

“It definitely doesn’t.”

San Jose Sharks (19-42-9)

Alexandar Georgiev will start, and Cam Lund will make his NHL debut.

Here are projected lines:

Eklund-Celebrini-Smith
Graf-Wennberg-Toffoli
Dellandrea-Giles-Lund
Grundstrom-Ostapchuk-Goodrow

Ferraro-Mukhamadullin
Cagnoni-Desharnais
Carlsson-Liljegren

Georgiev

Cam Lund says about 15 family & friends will be at his NHL debut tonight.

Longest distance traveled?

Lund says his friend from Barcelona got in last night at 11 PM, after a 20-hour trip

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) March 27, 2025

Toronto Maple Leafs (43-25-3)

#Leafs lines at morning skate Mar. 27/25

Knies-Matthews-Marner
McMann-Tavares-Nylander
Laughton-Domi-Robertson
Lorentz-Kampf-Jarnkrok
Holmberg

Rielly-Carlo
McCabe-Tanev
Benoit-OEL
Myers

Woll
Stolarz@BodogCA

— David Alter (@dalter) March 27, 2025

Where To Watch

Puck drop between the San Jose Sharks and Toronto Maple Leafs is 7:30 PM PT at SAP Center. Watch it live on NBC Sports California+. Listen to it on the Sharks Audio Network.