Celebrini, the first pick in the 2024 NHL Draft, and Smith, the fourth pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, will be making their NHL debuts this season, and much will be expected of the forwards within a franchise that has 11 players on its roster who are under the age of 25.
Celebrini, who turned 18 in June, had 64 points (32 goals, 32 assists) in 38 games for Boston University last season and won the Hobey Baker Award, given to the top men’s hockey player in the NCAA. Smith, 19, had 71 points (25 goals, 46 assists) in 41 games for Boston College and led the NCAA in total points.
Adding to this duo, San Jose has an international roster that includes Sweden’s Filip Bystedt and Russia’s Shakir Mukhamadullin, who recorded his first point in the NHL last season, seeing action in three games.
3. What kind of debut will Ryan Warsofsky have as a coach?
The coach replaced David Quinn on June 17, 2024, to become the youngest coach in the NHL at 36 years old, after two seasons as an assistant and upon his arrival, he called for new life, energy and some positivity to face the challenges that the club has in the next season.
“I would say last season was the low point, for sure, for everybody,” Warsofsky said. “I think everybody is probably writing us off, but that’s OK. We don’t want to be judged by what the media says. That’s completely irrelevant in my book. We’re the ones who are going to chart the course.”
The Sharks had NHL-lows of 19 wins and 47 points in 2023-24, their fewest in a full season since going 11-71 with two ties (21 points) in 1992-93. In 2022-23, they went 22-44-16.
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