Following a season in which they came on the cusp of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2019, the San Jose Sharks are making a major leadership announcement.

Forward Macklin Celebrini, whom they selected with the first overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft, was officially named the 11th captain in club history on Friday afternoon, following in the footsteps of previous Sharks captains like Owen Nolan, Patrick Marleau, and Vincent Damphousse.

Even more special was the fact that former captain Joe Thornton, who was recently inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame and had his No. 19 jersey number retired by the club, officially introduced Celebrini as captain to the rest of the team; Celebrini lived with Thornton during his first two NHL seasons. His 115 points broke the franchise record of 114, which was held by Thornton.

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In 2025-26, Celebrini had a full breakout campaign, scoring 45 goals with 70 assists, finishing in the top-five in overall NHL scoring. After being taken first overall in 2024, he made an immediate impact with the Sharks, scoring 25 goals and 63 points as an 18-year-old rookie while setting franchise records for rookie points and assists. He was named to the NHL All-Rookie Team and finished as a Calder Trophy finalist as the NHL's best rookie.

He became just the sixth teenager in NHL history to record a 100-point season and finished fourth in league scoring while earning a Ted Lindsay Award finalist spot. So far in his NHL career, Celebrini has scored 70 goals with 108 assists for 178 points, along with 72 penalty minutes.