Jake Walman could see it coming. The San Jose Sharks were a young bunch last season when the defenceman played with them before they traded him to the Edmonton Oilers at the trade deadline. And the youngest – Macklin Celebrini, who was the first overall pick in the 2024 National Hockey League draft – was, and is, the brightest. It was more than just talent, though, the 29-year-old Walman said. Work ethic helped make the now-19-year-old Sharks star – he’s fourth in NHL scoring heading into Thursday night’s game against the Oilers (7 p.m.) with 78 points in 51 games – and his youthful teammates stand out. “I think that’s kind of the cornerstone behind any successful team,” Walman, who signed a seven-year contract extension with Edmonton in the off-season, told reporters after the Oilers’ morning skate. “Those young guys that they have leading there now, starting with obviously Mack, he’s a huge competitor. He doesn’t stop working, and that’s the type of thing you need to turn a team like that around.” And the Sharks’ turnaround has been a noticeable swing: from a last-place finish in the NHL last season to sitting with the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference 51 games into 2025-26 heading into Thursday’s action at Rogers Place. Walman sees similarities between Celebrini and two of his Oilers teammates, Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, the biggest one being “competitiveness.” “Since I’ve been here with Connor and Leon ... all they care about is winning and doing anything they can for the team, and that’s what I see in Mac,” he said. That hasn’t gone unnoticed by one member of the Oilers’ dynamic duo. Draisaitl said Thursday that, beyond the “impressive” numbers put up by Celebrini this year (27 goals, 51 assists), the young star – even during his rookie campaign last season – was “playing the right way.” “At that age, that’s hard to do,” he said. “That’s special.” McDavid leads the NHL in scoring (33G-59A-92P in 54 games). Draisaitl is four points behind Celebrini in fifth (25G-49A-74P in 51 games). Celebrini has seen his Sharks mature, with belief in themselves growing over the campaign. “We believe we can just close out games,” he said after Thursday’s morning skate. “We believe before the game starts that we can win and that we can play a full 60 minutes. That belief has been built throughout the year. It wasn’t there at the start.” Projected Oilers lineup Forward Defence Goal Projected Sharks lineup Forward Defence Goal
