SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) 鈥� San Jose Sharks superstar Macklin Celebrini signed a five-year, $94 million extension Wednesday that will make him the highest-paid player in the NHL.
Celebrini had one year remaining on his three-year, $2.925 million entry-level contract before signing the deal that keeps him locked up with the Sharks through the 2031-32 season.
The $18.8 million average annual value of the deal that Celebrini reached with general manager Mike Grier and owner Hasso Plattner is the richest in NHL history, topping the .
鈥淲e wanted to make sure Mack felt valued here and he was compensated fairly,鈥� Grier said. 鈥淚n our eyes, he鈥檚 the best young player in the league. So we felt like we wanted to pay him an amount that was commiserate with that. He was willing to take a little bit less to leave us some flexibility, so we can keep building out the roster as we go along.鈥�
Celebrini could have signed a deal worth up to about $20.8 million a year, and Grier said Plattner was willing to pay that much if necessary. But Celebrini made clear early in the negotiations that he was willing to take a little less to make sure the Sharks had the flexibility to build a championship roster around him.
鈥淭hat meant a lot to me,鈥� Grier said. “He showed his faith and his commitment to the organization, and him wanting to be here and be successful here. It was pretty important and pretty cool for me to hear that from such a young player having that maturity.鈥�
Celebrini, who turned 20 in June, has established himself as one of the since being picked first overall by San Jose in 2024. His 178 points are the fifth most for a teenager and his 70 career goals are seventh best for a player before turning 20.
Celebrini had 45 goals and 70 assists last season, with his 115 points breaking Joe Thornton鈥檚 franchise record of 114 set in 2006-07 and trailing Wayne Gretzky (137 in 1979-80) and Sidney Crosby (120 in 2006-07) for the most in a season for a player before turning 20.
鈥淚 couldn鈥檛 be happier to sign an extension today,鈥� Celebrini said in a statement. 鈥淭he faith and support鈥痶hat Mr. Plattner, Mike Grier and the entire staff have shown me鈥痶hroughout鈥痶he past two seasons is proof that we are building something special here.鈥疢y teammates and I are ready to take another step toward the ultimate goal of bringing a Stanley Cup to this city and its incredible fans.鈥疘 can鈥檛 wait to get going.鈥�
He had the 10th most points ever for a player who missed the playoffs, recording a point on 46.2% of San Jose goals for the second-best rate in the league behind Connor McDavid (48/9%) and the best ever for a teenager.
He also was the leading goal scorer in the Olympics, with five goals to help Canada win the silver medal.
Grier said he had no hesitation giving a young player like Celebrini so much money, saying he followed advice he got from his late father, Bobby, and brother, Chris, who were both longtime executives in the NFL.
鈥淚f you鈥檙e going to do a long-term extension with someone and pay them a lot of money, you鈥檝e got to bet on the person first and foremost,鈥� Grier said. 鈥淚n this case, I think you couldn鈥檛 bet on a better kid than Mack. If it does anything, it鈥檒l motivate him just to be even better than he already is. But I don鈥檛 think it will change him at all.鈥�
Despite Celebrini’s exploits, the . They improved by 34 points for the 10th best single-season jump in the last 30 years but landed four points out of the playoffs.
Celebrini is part of a strong young core in San Jose alongside fellow promising players like Michael Misa, Will Smith, Igor Chernyshov and Sam Dickinson. The Sharks added even more young talent this offseason with overall. They also added North Dakota defenseman Keaton Verhoeff at No. 9 and WHL Vancouver play-making defenseman Ryan Lin at No. 21.
at the start of the offseason, trading for defenseman Darnell Nurse and signing defenseman Jacob Trouba and forward Mason Marchment.
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