What makes Macklin Celebrini’s NHL Draft season performance so special

Steven Ellis
Steven Ellis
Macklin Celebrini (Screenshot from Everything College Hockey All Access)
Credit: Macklin Celebrini (Screenshot from Everything College Hockey All Access)

It’s very likely that 20 years from now, college hockey purists will still be talking about the absolute brilliance they witnessed following Macklin Celebrini’s freshman season at Boston University.

The Terriers will be one of four participants in the NCAA’s Frozen Four from April 11-13, with Celebrini being the clear draw. He enters the national championship series with a whopping 32 goals and 64 points in 37 games, one point shy of tying Adam Fantilli’s output as a freshman with the University of Michigan last year. Fantilli’s run was one of the best rookie campaigns by a draft prospect in NCAA history, easily earning him the Hobey Baker Award as the top men’s player.

But Fantilli was a 2004-born player in a 2005-born draft. With a late birthday, Fantilli naturally graduated to the college ranks after two great seasons with the USHL’s Chicago Steel. Celebrini? He had to fast-track school to play and become the only 2006-born player in the men’s NCAA hockey circuit.

Celebrini is just the third 17-year-old in NCAA men’s hockey history to break the 60-point barrier, and he now owns the record for most goals at 32 after surpassing two-time Stanley Cup champion Craig Simpson, who had 31 with Michigan State University in 1984-85.

The difference? College hockey is a significantly different product than it was back in the 1980s. The NCAA is now the premier destination for many of the NHL’s top prospects, more so than ever before. Matthew Wood, Celebrini’s linemate at the U-18 World Championship last year, had 34 points with Northeastern as a 17-year-old in 2022-23. Otherwise, it’s a rare occurrence, with future Hockey Hall of Famer Jonathan Toews being the only other player since the start of the 21st century to register more than 30 points at that age.

It’s not like Celebrini is being carried by more veteran linemates, either. Defenseman Lane Hutson is second in team scoring with 49 points, while Quinn Hutson, Ryan Greene and Jeremy Wilmer are the only other players with over 30 points. Celebrini had more goals than all but five players had points on Boston University – one of the best teams in the country.

San Jose Sharks prospect Will Smith, Anaheim’s Cutter Gauthier and Carolina’s Jackson Blake are among the top picks for the Hobey Baker this season. But with what Celebrini has done this year – not just as a 17-year-old freshman, but as a player, in general – he’s got as good of a case as anyone to win the coveted prize. If he does, he’ll become just the fourth freshman behind Fantilli, Jack Eichel and Paul Kariya to do it.

“What he’s showing at BU, he’s showing how complete of a player he is,” one scout said. “Dare I say, maybe more complete than Bedard.”

Don’t worry; we’ll get to compare the two players another day. They might be closer than many first believed. But when it comes to defensive play, Celebrini definitely has the edge there. He puts in the 200-foot commitment you’d see from more defensive forwards, but he’s got the scoring touch to be a 100-point player in the NHL one day.

On his own, Celebrini is special. He was Canada’s best player at the U-18 World Championship last month, scoring six goals and 15 points in just seven games en route to a bronze medal. That was three points shy of the record by a 16-year-old set by Alexander Ovechkin (2002) and Mikhail Grigorenko (2011). The craziest part? Celebrini did it with an injured shoulder, with off-season surgery taking him out of action to start the 2023-24 season.

Then, at the World Junior Championship this past winter, Celebrini had four goals and eight points in five games as Canada fell in the quarterfinals to Czechia. Had Canada gone the distance, Celebrini would be in the MVP conversation for just how important he was for his country as an underaged player.

Add in his tremendous season with the USHL’s Chicago Steel where he had 46 goals and 86 points in 50 games last year, there hasn’t been a time in Celebrini’s career where he hasn’t been one of the best players, regardless of age.

“His poise, maturity, his skillset – there are few prospects like him in hockey,” another scout said. “He’s been an elite talent for so long, and he doesn’t let it get to his head. He knows what he’s capable of, but he also knows how to get the most out of his linemates, too.”

Celebrini is NHL-ready. He’ll undoubtedly turn pro once he’s drafted, with San Jose and Chicago holding the best odds right now. If Boston University goes the distance, it’ll be because of Celebrini’s brilliance at both ends of the ice. He has eight instances of three points or more in a single game and 11 games with two points. Considering he has 10 single-point games and just five scoreless games, it’s more likely than not that he’s going to go off in Saint Paul, Minnesota, later this month.

But there’s no room for error – one loss, and they’re out. BU are the favorites to beat Denver in the semifinal, but they just lost to Boston College in the Hockey East title game. Celebrini doesn’t need any motivation to take over a game, but if anyone can get it done when the pressure’s on, it’s him.

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