MILAN – Macklin Celebrini knows the puck bounced his way.
Set to become the youngest player to ever suit up for Canada at an Olympic event involving NHL players, the 19-year-old had to wait just 125 professional games before stepping onto sports’ biggest stage.
Many of his teammates — battle-tested veterans with Stanley Cup rings, MVP awards and scoring titles — didn’t know if their own moment would ever arrive.
The league, however, is finally back in the international spotlight at the Milan Cortina Games following a 12-year ice age. And Celebrini is a peach-fuzzed beneficiary.
“I’m super grateful,” said the centre from North Vancouver, B.C. “Lucky to be in this spot.”
The NHL stayed away from the 2018 Olympics due to financial considerations before the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered plans that were pretty far down the road for a return in 2022.
“It’s tough that a (lot) of these guys haven’t been able to get this opportunity when they should have,” Celebrini said. “I’m just blessed and honoured.”
Celebrini also belongs.
The San Jose Sharks forward has practised twice on Connor McDavid’s wing — Canada held a closed session Monday, but head coach Jon Cooper said the combinations from Sunday’s night skate remained intact — with a hulking Tom Wilson patrolling the other flank.
“He may be 19 years old, like, his physical body is, but his acumen for the game is not,” Cooper said of Celebrini, the player selected No. 1 overall at the 2024 NHL draft. “He’s wise beyond his years. I can’t sit here and look at him as this kid … hell of a hockey player.”
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Celebrini sits fourth in league scoring in his sophomore season with 81 points — 42 more than the next-closest Sharks player — while the 53 assists he’s registered through 55 games is tied with Canadian teammate Nathan MacKinnon for third overall.
“Super impressive,” said the 30-year-old MacKinnon, who was taken by the Colorado Avalanche with the top pick in 2013. “I wasn’t even close at 19. It’s amazing to see.”
McDavid, who went first in 2015 to the Edmonton Oilers, is just getting to know Celebrini. Similar to MacKinnon, he had to wait a lot longer for his first crack at the Olympics.
“Just that little bit of being around him, I can tell just how much he puts into it, how hard he works, how much he cares about it,” said the 29-year-old McDavid, the NHL’s leading scorer in 2025-26 with 96 points. “It’s been impressive to see. He’s such a young guy, but to make this team, and not only to make this team, he’s going to be asked to play a big role, that’s incredible.”
Canadian general manager Doug Armstrong of the St. Louis Blues had a conversation with Celebrini back in October 2024 before a game against the Sharks. The youngster was told he likely wouldn’t be in mix for the 4 Nations Face-Off — an appetizer to the Olympics the country won in dramatic fashion last February — but Milan was a realistic goal.
“I was just excited,” said Celebrini, whose team faces Czechia to open its men’s tournament Thursday. “I didn’t even know I was on the radar or even in the conversation. When he brought that to my attention, it was a little bit of a push and excitement … just a little bit more of something that I can look forward to and work to.”
And work he did.
Celebrini finished with 63 points (25 goals, 38 assists) across 70 games in his rookie season before exploding this term as part of a surprising playoff push in San Jose.
Canadian captain Sidney Crosby got his first up-close look at last year’s world championship.
“It’s just his mindset,” said the 38-year-old, who was once in Celebrini’s position as the No. 1 pick by the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2005. “He’s a hard worker, he’s competitive. He wants to be in these situations, wants to be in big moments. It’s no fluke.”
Celebrini now has played for Canada on multiple levels, including heartbreak at the world junior hockey championship.
He understands and welcomes the gold-medal pressure under the biggest microscope as the powerhouse nation looks for a fourth podium-topping finish with its NHL players after victories in 2002, 2010 and 2014.
“We just have that expectation on ourselves,” Celebrini said. “We have that expectation on ourselves to make our country proud.
“It’s a huge honour and something I don’t take for granted.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 9, 2026.
© 2026 The Canadian Press