dpLin, a defenseman, has already skated with Celebrini a few times this offseason. They’re both from the Vancouver area.
“I mean, it’s awesome,” Lin said. “I think everyone knows how good of a player he is — he already is at 19 — and all their young talent. It’s a really good situation I’m going into, and yeah, I can’t wait.”
The Sharks have missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs for seven straight seasons, but they have been reloading and are on the rise again.
They have selected nine players in the first round over the past four drafts, including four top-four picks — center Will Smith (No. 4 in 2023), Celebrini (No. 1 in 2024), center Michael Misa (No. 2 in 2025) and Stenberg.
“They have something really good going on,” Stenberg said.
Celebrini finished fourth in the NHL with 115 points (45 goals, 70 assists) in 82 games this season and helped Team Canada win silver at the 2026 Winter Olympics in February. The Sharks contended for a playoff spot ahead of schedule, finishing four points out of the second wild card from the Western Conference.
“The next 10, 15 years are going to be pretty special there,” Verhoeff said. “I mean, the players they’ve (added) already and how they’ve been playing already, obviously taking a jump, they’ve been an exciting team to watch.”
Lin said: “All the young talent they have, they’re rich with it. To join that and hopefully be a part of that one day, it’s really, really surreal.”
