Macklin Celebrini Signs Record-Setting Sharks Extension
The team announced Wednesday that Macklin Celebrini has signed a five-year contract extension worth $94 million.
The deal carries an $18.8 million average annual value, making the 20-year-old the highest-paid player in the NHL when it kicks in for the 2027-28 season.
A New Salary Ceiling
The number resets the top of the league.
Celebrini's $18.8 million AAV surpasses the $18 million Anaheim's Leo Carlsson recently secured, meaning Carlsson's reign as the NHL's highest-paid player will not even last until the regular season.
The extension runs through 2031-32, and Celebrini will be just 26 years old when he is up for re-negotiation as an unrestricted free agent in 2032.
Breaking: The Sharks have signed forward Macklin Celebrini to a five-year contract extension worth $18.8 million AAV, the team announced.
— ESPN (@espn) July 29, 2026
The deal makes him the NHL's highest paid player. pic.twitter.com/YSleRUd97O
He had been eligible to sign since July 1 as he enters the final year of his entry-level contract, which carries a modest $975,000 cap hit.
Unlike the drawn-out Carlsson negotiation in Anaheim, the Sharks moved decisively to avoid letting the situation linger.
The Season That Earned It
The contract comes on the heels of a historic 2025-26 campaign.
Celebrini set a Sharks franchise record with 115 points, eclipsing Joe Thornton's 114 from 2006-07, while his 45 goals were the second-most in team history.
Connor Bedard's contract extension: 5 years, $15 million cap hit.
— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) July 29, 2026
Macklin Celebrini's: 5 years, $18.8 million cap hit.
It should be noted that Celebrini still has 1 more year left on his entry-level contract before the new deal kicks in. #Blackhawks https://t.co/kwQ9w5wsoc
In just his age-19 season, he nearly dragged San Jose into the playoffs almost single-handedly, leading the team in goals by 21 and assists by 32, and he factored into a point on 46.2 percent of the Sharks' goals, an NHL record for a teenager.
He was a finalist for the Ted Lindsay Award as the league's most outstanding player, as voted by the NHLPA, and shined on the international stage with 24 points in 16 games for Team Canada across the Olympics and World Championship.
The Commitment
Celebrini made clear this spring that staying in San Jose was his priority.
"I want to commit to this team and be here, and I love it here," he told reporters in April, two days after the Sharks' season ended.
GM Mike Grier called him the foundation of the franchise.
"In just two seasons as a teenager in the National Hockey League and on the International stage, Macklin has established himself as one of the premier players in the world," Grier said. "We are extremely excited to have him secured and committed as the centerpiece of a core of talented players in San Jose."
The extension is the first of many major decisions ahead for San Jose.
The Sharks now must turn their attention to fellow young forward Will Smith, whose contract also expires next summer, along with goaltender Yaroslav Askarov.
