Macklin Celebrini’s record-setting extension gives fans an early glimpse at the financial future of the NHL.
As the league’s salary cap climbs to unprecedented heights, the 20-year-old’s five-year, $94-million ($18.8 million AAV) extension showcases the San Jose Sharks’ willingness to spend and the evolution of superstar value across the league.
Let’s take a look at how this monumental deal will impact the future of the Sharks franchise and the rest of the NHL.
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR THE NHL
This recent wave of massive contracts for younger players has had the word ‘bargain’ attached to them considering the current landscape of the NHL and its rising salary cap.
However, it’s more appropriate to look at this as fair market value for a player with the franchise-altering talent that Celebrini possesses.
Under the NHL’s current Collective Bargaining Agreement, no player's cap hit can exceed 20 percent of the total team salary cap at the time the contract is signed. With a projected salary cap of $113 million for 2027-28, the maximum amount a player could earn would rise from $20.8 million to $22.6 million per season.
This deal doesn’t put the Sharks under complete financial constraints, but it also gives Celebrini a hefty payday while projecting to account for over 16 percent of the team’s cap hit when the deal kicks in.
The NHL will have its first $20-million player soon enough, and there was every reason to believe Celebrini could be the one to reach that historic number after his phenomenal teenage seasons.
There are a ton of candidates who could reach those heights in the near future, with Cale Makar, Quinn Hughes, Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews and Zach Werenski all due for new contracts in the next two years.
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR THE SHARKS
This historic contract, combined with the team’s moves throughout free agency, is a signal from GM Mike Grier to Sharks fans that the rebuild is ending.
This also sets an internal ceiling for the Sharks. Will Smith is next in line for a major raise, and beyond that, Michael Misa, Ivar Stenberg, Keaton Verhoeff, and Sam Dickinson all have the potential to become top earners around the league if their development goes as planned.
It’s unlikely that any of them will ever establish themselves as true superstars like Celebrini has. Still, there will be a clear pecking order that Grier will have to navigate moving forward.
This deal is a good foundation for that, and will set a precedent for the franchise in the years to come.
There’s no question that Celebrini could have demanded the maximum annual value, and nobody would’ve blinked if the Sharks had agreed to it.
The formula for building a contender and the financial decisions that come with it is still functionally the same, regardless of the larger figures teams are dealing with.
There’s always a concern that the Darnell Nurse and Jacob Trouba contracts may eventually complicate their cap sheet, but things look pretty clean right now.
It’s been a pivotal summer for the Sharks, and their window for contention could come sooner than anticipated.