San Jose Sharks

After missing the entirety of the 2024-25 season, San Jose Sharks veteran Logan Couture is reportedly set to hang up his skates.

According to Eric Stephens of The Athletic, Couture "is expected to announce the end" of his 15-year NHL career in a press conference on Tuesday after a two-year battle with a groin-related injury. League sources reportedly told The Athletic's Chris Johnston that Couture "will not officially retire, which would prevent him from being paid for the final two years of the eight-year, $64-million contract extension he signed in 2018."

Stephens noted that Couture will be joined by Sharks general manager Mike Grier at Tuesday's press conference at the SAP Center "to address his inability to return to the ice."

Couture was limited to six games during the 2023-24 campaign, with his last appearance on the ice being Jan. 31, 2024. The 36-year-old has been suffering from a condition known as osteitis pubis. Citing the Cleveland Clinic, Stephens described the condition as "inflammation in the joint between the left and right pubic bones. It can cause pain and swelling in one’s groin or lower abdominal and can be commonly found in athletes due to the repetitive usage of the hips, pelvis and groin."

After being selected with the ninth pick in the 2007 NHL draft, Couture spent his entire career with the Sharks and became one of the best players in franchise history. In 933 regular-season games, he scored 323 goals and added 378 assists. He was also an excellent playoff performer, scoring 48 goals in 116 postseason games. He helped lead the Sharks to their only Stanley Cup Final appearance in 2016, scoring 10 goals and leading the team with 30 points along the way.

The Sharks finished last in the Western Conference this season with a record of 20-49-11. The team has not made a playoff appearance since the 2018-19 season.

After a dazzling performance in his NHL debut, Macklin Celebrini is going to miss time due to a lower-body injury.

The San Jose Sharks announced on Saturday that the No. 1 pick in the 2024 draft has been placed on injured reserve, with Jack Thompson being recalled from the AHL to take Celebrini's spot on the roster.

Per NHL rules, a player on injured reserve must sit out for a minimum of seven days. A player who is expected to miss at least 10 games and 24 days during the season can be placed on long-term injured reserve.

There is no indication at this point how long Celebrini is expected to be out of action.

Head coach Ryan Warsofsky told reporters that Celebrini was being evaluated for a lower-body injury that had been bothering him during training camp and preseason.

There was no indication from the first game of the regular season that anything was wrong. Celebrini scored his first career goal seven minutes into the first period against the St. Louis Blues.

Celebrini assisted on Tyler Toffoli's goal late in the first period. The Sharks would go on to lose the game 5-4 in overtime, but the 18-year-old phenom offered the franchise a strong glimpse of what the future will look like with him as the centerpiece.

The Boston University alum was on the ice for a total of 17:35 in the opener. He was selected with the top pick in June's draft after becoming the youngest player ever to win the Hobey Baker Award as the nation's top college player.

Celebrini finished with 64 points in 38 games during his freshman campaign for the Terriers.

The earliest date Celebrini will be able to return is Oct. 19. The Sharks will play four games between now and then, starting with Saturday's matchup against the Anaheim Ducks at SAP Center in San Jose.

The first game that Celebrini would be eligible to play is against the Colorado Avalanche on Oct. 20.

The San Jose Sharks have signed Macklin Celebrini, the No. 1 pick of the 2024 NHL Draft, to a standard entry-level contract.

Celebrini is now set to join the Sharks roster for the 2024-25 season, ending his college hockey career after one Hobey Baker-winning campaign for Boston University.

Macklin's contract is set to carry a cap hit of $975,000 per year and an average annual value of $4.48 million with performance and signing bonuses, per CapFriendly:

Celebrini last season became the the fourth freshman to be named the top player in men's college hockey after recording 32 goals and 32 assists in 38 games for the Terriers, while finishing first in the nation with 1.69 points per game.

He is now set to join Will Smith, the No. 4 pick of the 2023 draft, in the NHL next season.

Smith signed with the Sharks in May after ranking first in the nation with 71 points in 41 games for Boston College.

The former BC star forward said after signing his own contract that he believed it was "time to take that next step" (h/t the Associated Press.)

The Sharks will hope that Celebrini, who turned 18 in June, is also ready to make the jump to the NHL. He and Smith will be expected to provide an immediate offensive boost to a Sharks team that sorely needs one after finishing 31st in the NHL with 2.2 goals per game last season.

The Sharks have also added veteran offensive help this offseason, including forward Tyler Toffoli, who said Celebrini was one of the reasons he chose to sign with the Sharks in free agency (h/t Curtis Pashelka of the Mercury News.)

Toffoli could end up as one of the players set to skate on Celebrini's wing as new head coach Ryan Warsofsky looks to rebuild the roster this fall.

The San Jose Sharks' rebuild got a major boost Friday night with the top pick of the 2024 NHL draft.

The Sharks selected Boston University standout Macklin Celebrini:

Celebrini's selection was expected since the Sharks finished the 2023-24 season with an NHL-low 19 wins.

The Sharks will enter a new era with Celebrini, who has been billed as a two-way prospect comparable to Sidney Crosby since his Hobey Baker-winning college debut season.

Celebrini recorded 32 goals and 32 assists in just 38 games for the Terriers last season.

Prior to establishing himself as a Boston University star, Celebrini was named the 2022-23 USHL Forward of the Year after leading the league with 46 goals and 86 points in 50 games for the Chicago Steel.

In both the NCAA and USHL, Celebrini stood out not for just his scoring abilities, but his passing and defensive strengths as well.

Those qualities will help the Sharks forget about a dismal 2023-24 campaign that included a record-tying 11-game season-opening winless streak.

Celebrini will now join former Boston College standout Will Smith and 2021 first-rounder William Eklund to form the Sharks' new offensive core.

The Sharks had more than $30 million in projected cap space available heading into the draft, per CapFriendly.

That will leave the franchise with more than enough room to begin building a new roster around Celebrini, Smith, Eklund and the Sharks' upcoming No. 11 pick as San Jose looks to climb back toward playoff contention.

The San Jose Sharks named Ryan Warsofsky as their new head coach Thursday, replacing David Quinn.

Warsofsky spent the past two seasons as an assistant coach in San Jose after previously serving as a head coach in the AHL for the Charlotte Checkers and Chicago Wolves.

Quinn lasted just two seasons as the Sharks' head coach, going 41-98-25. San Jose had an NHL-low 47 points this season, which helped them secure the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NHL draft.

Sharks general manager Mike Grier commented on the decision to elevated Warsofsky to head coach, saying:

"We're very excited to announce Ryan as the 11th head coach of the San Jose Sharks. His track record of success at nearly every level of hockey as a head and assistant coach speaks for itself. Ryan knows our existing group well, has the respect of the players who he will be working with, and will be a great teacher for the young players who will be joining our organization."

Warsofsky also expressed excitement over his first head coaching opportunity at the NHL level:

"I'm overwhelmed with gratitude and excitement to be named as the head coach of the San Jose Shark. This a tremendous opportunity to continue to be part of a well-respected organization, and my family and I couldn't be more excited for this next chapter. I want to thank our owner Hasso Plattner, president Jonathan Becher, general manager Mike Grier and assistant GM's Tom Holy and Joe Will for their trust in me. This is an organization that has a rich history of winning, and I can't wait to get to work on coaching a team that our fans can be proud of."

While the Sharks seemingly have a long rebuild ahead of them, selecting highly touted forward Macklin Celebrini with the No. 1 overall pick could kick-start things after he registered 64 points in 38 games at Boston University this past season.

The 36-year-old Warsofsky has enjoyed enormous success working with young players in the past, which suggests he may be the right man for the job in San Jose.

During his time in the AHL, Warsofsky was an assistant coach for the Checkers team that won the Calder Cup in 2018, and he was the head coach when the Wolves posted the AHL's best record and won the Calder Cup in 2022.

Although Warsofsky has a long road ahead of him in terms of making the Sharks playoff contenders again, the organization has enjoyed a great deal of success over the years.

The Sharks entered the NHL as an expansion team in 1991 and made it to the playoffs by their third season. Overall, San Jose has made 21 playoff appearances in 32 years.

That includes a trip to the Stanley Cup Final in 2016, which the Sharks lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Their current five-year playoff drought is the longest in team history, and while it is difficult to envision it ending in the next year or two, the Sharks seemingly believe they have found the right coach to guide them back to relevancy.

The 2024 NHL draft is heading to the Sphere in Las Vegas on June 28 and 29.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman announced the site of the draft during Tuesday's lottery.

After the announcement of where the draft would take place, the San Jose Sharks were revealed as the winner of the lottery to earn the No. 1 overall pick.

Since opening in 2023, the Sphere has primarily been a concert venue. U2 played 40 shows from September through March as part of its Vegas residency. Phish played four shows at the arena from April 18 to 21.

Dead & Company is playing 24 shows at the Sphere between May 16 to July 13.

UFC president Dana White announced in November that the company had booked Mexican Independence Day in 2024 for an event. The show is scheduled to take place on Sept. 14.

Barring a last-minute addition to the Sphere's schedule, the NHL draft will be the first sporting event at the arena.

"The NHL is proud to bring the first sports event and the first live television broadcast to Sphere," said Steve Mayer, NHL Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Content Officer, in the league's official release. "Together with the amazing team at Sphere, we plan to deliver an NHL Draft like no other, introducing the bright future of hockey in an innovative and exhilarating setting."

Fans will be able to purchase tickets to attend the draft at the Sphere starting on Thursday at 1 p.m. ET.

The Sphere can hold up to 20,000 fans including standing-room for events. This will mark the first time the NHL draft has been held in Las Vegas.

San Jose's victory in the lottery will allow the franchise to select prized prospect Macklin Celebrini. The Boston University standout is widely regarded as the No. 1 player in this class after becoming the youngest player to win the Hobey Baker Award at 17 years old.

This marks the first time the Sharks have won the top pick in the draft since the lottery system was implemented in 1995. They had the best odds for the No. 1 pick after finishing with an NHL-low 47 points this season.

The Sharks have missed the playoffs in each of the past five seasons after reaching the Western Conference Finals in the 2018-19 season.