Celebrini Weighs Discounted Sharks Deal After 115-Point Season as Crosby, MacKinnon Shape Approach
Updated
Updated · Sportsnet.ca · Jul 14
Celebrini Weighs Discounted Sharks Deal After 115-Point Season as Crosby, MacKinnon Shape Approach
3 articles · Updated · Sportsnet.ca · Jul 14
Summary
Macklin Celebrini said he would consider taking less than top dollar on his next San Jose Sharks contract, saying he wants to help the team keep flexibility to build a winner.
The 20-year-old told ESPN that Sidney Crosby and Nathan MacKinnon influenced that thinking, pointing to stars who accepted below-market deals to support contending rosters.
Celebrini became eligible to sign an extension on July 1 but said he is in no rush, with one year left on his entry-level contract and talks likely to move only when it suits both sides.
His leverage is strong after a 115-point 2025-26 season and a third-place Hart Trophy finish, even as Leo Carlsson's recent $18 million annual deal raised the market for young stars.
Any discount would be notable for a player who just joined Gretzky, Crosby, Lemieux, Hawerchuk and Carson as one of the few NHL teenagers to reach 100 points.