Olympic spotlight fuels hope for San Jose Sharks behind Macklin Celebrini

By Loureen Ayyoub

From the Winter Olympics spotlight to his base with the San Jose Sharks,  Macklin Celebrini has made a global splash and now he’s bringing that momentum back to the Bay Area.

All eyes are on Celebrini after the 19-year-old forward showcased his talent on an international stage in Italy. Though Team Canada fell short of a gold medal, losing to Team USA, Celebrini finished the Olympic Games with five goals and five assists, offering a glimpse of why many consider him one of the NHL’s rising stars.

For Bay Area hockey fans, the performance only reinforced what they already believed: Celebrini could be the future of the league, and of the franchise.

The San Jose Sharks remain in the bottom half of the Western Conference standings amid a challenging rebuild. But Celebrini understands that adversity is part of the process.

“I mean, every sports franchise goes through a tough spot, and maybe some fans don’t show up,” Celebrini said.

Despite the team’s struggles, excitement is building. New fans are following the Sharks each day, drawn in part by Celebrini’s emergence and the promise of a new era.

“We want to take those next steps,” he said. “I mean, all this comes along with it — the fans, the attention. We want those expectations. We want that pressure.”

Sharks broadcaster Brodie Brazil said the increased spotlight could help reenergize the fan base.

“Here in San Jose, we’re all hoping that some of that focus and attention transfers over to people paying more attention to this team,” Brazil said.

It has been 10 years since the Sharks reached the Stanley Cup Final. With Celebrini’s momentum, optimism is returning.

“A lot of people already thought that he’s one of the main characters of the movie that’s going on here,” Brazil said. “I think everybody is now hoping that the supporting cast can build around him and this franchise can have another legendary run.”

Celebrini hopes to help revive the prior winning streak.

“When you’re losing, you can’t expect someone to pay their money to come watch you lose,” he said. “So we are going to try to change that.”

With a young star ascending and renewed attention surrounding the franchise, the puck is dropping on what the Sharks hope will be a new era in San Jose.