Macklin Celebrini did something only 6 NHL players have done before
· Yahoo Sports
To call Macklin Celebrini a “phenom” would be a gross understatement. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft was highly touted, but his selection was definitely viewed as a bit of a letdown following the enormous hype that accompanied Connor Bedard the year prior. Two years later everything has flipped, as Bedard is a extremely good, but languishing on a horrific Blackhawks roster — while Celebrini is making history.
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Celebrini became just the 7th teenager in NHL history to record 100 points in a season before turning 20. Scoring two goals and registering one assist in a 5-4 win over the St. Louis Blues, he now has 38 goals and 63 assists on the year for 101 points with 10 games remaining. It puts Celebrini in some of the NHL’s rarest company, a laundry list of NHL legends — and one guy who never managed to live up to his early hype.
Let’s look at the list Celebrini is now a part of:
- Wayne Gretzky (137 points in 1979-80): The Great One. Without question the best player in NHL history, with records that will likely never fall.
- Sidney Crosby (102 points in 05-06): A guaranteed Hall of Fame lock with over 1,700 career points, who led the Pittburgh Penguins to three Stanley Cup wins
- Mario Lemieux (100 points in 1985-56): Hall of Fame legend with over 1,700 career points, two Stanley Cup wins, and nine All-Star appearances
- Connor McDavid (100 points in 16-17): Arguably the best player in the NHL right now. A seven-time All-Star who hasn’t yet reached the age of 30. McDavid has only failed to reached 100 points one season in his career, and that was only due to injury.
- Dale Hawerchuk (103 points in 1981-82): Hall of Fame two-way forward with over 1,400 career points and five All-Star appearances
- Jimmy Carson (107 points in 1986-87): The only player on the list who never really panned out. Carson had an incredible start to his career, but was traded from the Kings as part of the Gretzky trade. Carson never managed to develop further, regressing to become and oft-injured 73 point player over an 82 game season — largely bolstered by his early success.
It’s tough to imagine Celebrini will backslide with modern hockey conditions, training, and coaching. This is the rise of the next great player in hockey, and we’re witnessing it.