SAN JOSE — Macklin Celebrini had a goal and an assist in his NHL debut for the San Jose Sharks on Thursday night at SAP Center. But that was of little consolation to the first overall pick of the 2024 NHL Draft.
“It’s cool to get the first of both for my career,” Celebrini said. “But, I mean, we lost, so it sucks.”
Here’s what the Sharks said after Thursday’s loss.
RYAN WARSOFSKY
What went wrong there in the third period?
“Just sat back in the third period. That’s what you get.”
Thoughts on Celebrini?
“Thought he was good. Thought he was really good. Obviously, the points are one thing, but there’s some things he needs to learn on without the puck, him and Will (Smith). But I thought they were both solid in their debuts.”
What did you think of Tyler Toffoli and that line (with Celebrini and Eklund) in general.
“That line was good for us.”
On Gushchin?
“I thought he was a little inconsistent at times. He tried doing some things. Had a good second period. Obvioisly takes a penalty in the third there. But I thought he was solid.”
What do you see in the first period?
“Our puck play was very poor through the neutral zone. Weren’t managing our shifts very well. So a lot of teaching points in that first period, and I liked our second, so a lot of teaching moments tonight.”
What worked in the second period?
“We were imagining the puck through the neutral zone through our breakouts. We were holding on to pucks down low. We had some momentum going there with the power play. We were creating some offense, and guys started; I thought maybe they were gripping their sticks a little too tight in the first and just played a little bit more looser in the second. But again, a lot of learning to do tonight.”
What can you learn from the third period?
“Don’t sit back.”
Teachable moment?
“Yeah, it’s hard to win, right? It’s hard to win this league. It’s hard to win any single night. There are no teams that are just going to give you two points. So we’re going to learn from this. We’re going to bottle that second period up. We have a lot to learn, a lot to get better at with the puck, without the puck. It’s going to be a growing moment for our group. But the biggest thing is we’ve got to learn from this and move forward.”
Why do you think the group took its foot off the gas?
“Just a young group that’s going through some experiences together, a lot of new faces in there, a lot of scar tissue from the last couple years of how to win. It’s hard to win this league. It’s all the little things. It’s not the big thing. It’s not the points; it’s not the goals and assists. It’s a little things. Stopping on pucks. It’s playing without the puck, being underneath battles, playing on the defensive side, all those things that we saw spiral out of control in the third period, and a good team like that will capitalize.”
Do you have to tell the group to get out of a ‘here we go again’ attitude?
“We’ve already addressed that.”
You’ve talked about being a harder team to play against in this building. Did you get that even during the struggles tonight?
“Yeah, I thought we did some really good things. even in the first. I know the shots were totally lopsided, but we did some really good things in the first period that we’ve been talking about all training camp. Again, we’re gonna have to just keep getting better every single day. That’s what I’m gonna ask from this group. That’s what I’m gonna ask for myself, and I’ve got to learn and go back and look at maybe some decisions I could have done differently, and go
from there.”
Did you expect the kind of night Celebrini had? Is this a surprise?
“No, we’ve seen it all training camp, through the rookie tournament. He obviously has a high motor, a high hockey IQ, can make things happen really quick, and he wants to make things happen every shift. So I’m not surprised whatsoever.”
Matched up against Robert Thomas for much of the night. Were you comfortable with that going in? Was that kind of the plan all along?
“Yeah I thought we were comfortable with him in that matchup. I thought he did a really good job with that matchup. We’ve got to throw him into the fight here, and let him go. So he’s got to learn and get better. Just like every one of
us.”
Nice to get contributions from your bottom six and your PK?
“I thought the PK was good, bottom six was good. I thought Kunin and Goodrow’s line was solid. We’ve just got to keep getting better in certain situations.”‘
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So how do you feel getting game one under your belt?
“I’m happy it’s over and we can move forward with all the debuts and the hype around Mack, Will and just kind of move forward as a group and be more of a normal routine, to be honest with you. But again, a lot to learn, and we’re going to keep pushing forward.
Where can Will improve?
“Just play away from the puck. It’s not just Will; it’s our whole team. It’s just young players at this level that the game is extremely, extremely fast, and you’ve got to be able to think and react really quickly. And he’s learning shift to shift and he’ll learn game to game.”
WILL SMITH
What were the emotions of your NHL debut?
“Like I touched on before the game, it was a dream come true and a special night for my whole family. Obviously, it was a tough outcome, but still a dream come true.”
How good was it to get power-play and shorthanded goals on special teams despite the loss?
“It’s huge. Momentum comes off the special teams, especially a shortie, so it was very nice.”
How would you assess your performance? You had a lot of chances, a lot of near-misses.
“Like you said, I had a bunch of chances. And I mean, they’re going to keep coming, so I’ve just got to bear down and put ‘em in. But overall, I thought it was a good game.”
What was that warm-up skate like for you with Macklin Celebrini going out there alone? Did the boys hide the helmets or what happened there when you went out without them?
“It’s a tradition in the NHL. We got to our stall, our helmets were gone, so that was pretty funny. I’m glad we got to do that together too.”
What was the biggest eye-opener for you tonight?
“Everything. It’s also very nice seeing all the fans back and how loud it gets in that building. It was pretty special.”
How much does it mean to you that the fans have embraced you so quickly? Every time you came out, there were a lot of cheers every time they showed you on the screen.
“It means a lot. To come to an organization year one and be treated like that, it’s pretty special. We’re trying to bring energy back here, and I think it’s working.”
TYLER TOFFOLI
What can you guys learn from this game?
“It’s not easy to win. I mean, we had a really good opportunity, and I thought we really relied on (Mackenzie Blackwood) the first period, obviously. In the second, I thought we did a really good job and played the way that we wanted to play. We’ve just got to realize it’s not an easy league, especially when you’re playing against a veteran group over there. Those guys over there have won Stanley Cups. That’s kind of what happened today.”
What did you think of Macklin’s debut?
“Yeah, he’s awesome. I think he did what everybody expected him to do, and he made some really good plays. And I think at the end of the day, he’s obviously going to be pumped personally for himself, but he wants to win. He’s like everybody else in here.”
You guys have talked about consistency, needing to play a 60-minute game. You guys had a very good second period, what needs to change for Saturday to get that full 60?
“I mean, that’s the first game of the season, preseason, that we’ve all been together, really, as a group. I don’t think we played a full lineup in the preseason. So adjustments obviously still need to be made. And I think at the end of the day, we’re all going to get an opportunity to play certain minutes, and we all have to capitalize on those minutes. And if not, then things will change. And I don’t think Warso is afraid of making those tough decisions.”
On your goal, the pass from Macklin – are you expecting passes like that from him?
“Definitely. He did the same thing in the first game of the preseason that we played together. So he’s incredible. Incredible talent, works extremely hard. And like I said, at the end of the day, he wants to win games too, and he’s going to do whatever it takes.”
MACKLIN CELEBRINI
Describe just the energy tonight, just the beginning, the solo skate, etc.
“Yeah, it was awesome. It’s everything I thought it would be for my first game, and it was an amazing experience and one I’ll cherish for my whole life.”
I saw in the interview that you did with ESPN that someone in the celebratory scrum told you that it was your goal. Who told you that it was yours?
“(William Eklund) did, because I was like ‘Nice goal,’ and he was just like, ‘I didn’t score, you did.’ I thought he was just super excited that he scored, but I guess he was happy for me.”
Describe the play?
“I got a pass entering the zone. Didn’t see a lot of options. They had a couple guys back, and I saw (Eklund) driving the net, and I thought he had a step on the defenseman. So I just tried to fake up and then just throw into the middle, see if he could get a stick on it. But it was just a lucky bounce off the D’s skate. “
What needs to happen so you guys don’t have a come-from-behind loss like this one tonight?
“There’s lots that we need to improve on. We’re not perfect. I thought we had all the energy going into the third and they just got one, and then it kind of snowballed after that, which can happen. But we’re going to learn from it. It’s the first game of the year. Sucks because we gave up three goals and then an overtime winner, but we need to learn from it and move on.”
What are you going to do with the puck from your first goal?
“I wish I could give you an answer. I have no idea.”
Second period you guys were able to change the momentum. What did you guys do right in the second?
“We had all four lines going, getting on the forecheck, turning pucks over and getting behind them. We put a lot of pressure on them, and we capitalized on a couple opportunities that were huge for us. Goody on that PK was a great play by him just to disrupt that pass. Just all throughout our lineup, we just played good hockey. It created a lot of energy for our group.
What does it mean to have a goal and an assist?
“It’s cool to get the first of both for my career, but, I mean, we lost, so it sucks.”
What do you think you’ll remember most about your debut?
“I think just the whole process going up to it. All my teammates and going through with Smitty too, that was really cool. Just all those memories, just those plays, first shift, all that the warm up rookie lap, I tried to soak up as much as I could.”
