SAN JOSE — With a small cloud of uncertainty about when star rookie center Macklin Celebrini will come back from injured reserve hovering overhead, the Sharks still are trying to figure out how they’ll move on until he returns.
Even though Saturday night’s game against the Anaheim Ducks at SAP Center ended in a 2-0 loss, it was a good first step for San Jose as it travels down that path.
Will Smith, the No. 4 overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, was given the first crack at filling in for Celebrini and played 13 minutes and 5 seconds, but it was a job shared by many.
Mikael Granlund, who essentially was the Sharks’ No. 1 center last season because of injuries, shouldered the bulk of the load against the Ducks, logging six more minutes of ice time (24:27) than he did in Thursday’s season opener (18:15). The 32-year-old missed all five shots he took during his time on the ice, but he won 11 of 17 faceoffs.
Alex Wennberg and Nico Sturm were San Jose’s other two centers, with 14:30 and 8:58 of ice time, respectively.
“The other guys stepped up,” Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said. “Obviously [Celebrini is] a really good player, but we’re focused on the guys that are on the ice tonight.”
Celebrini, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft, was outstanding in his debut Thursday when he had a goal and an assist in the Sharks’ 5-4 overtime loss to the St. Louis Blues. That game had Sharks fans in hype mode, as they celebrated and pondered the possibilities of what could happen with Celebrini in town.
Those celebrations have been put on hold — at least temporarily — while Celebrini recovers from a reported hip injury.
“Obviously Mac is a special player,” Sharks veteran defenseman Mario Ferraro said. “He’s going to help us offensively, he’s going to help the confidence of the group, everything. He’s a good person in the locker room. Because he’s a young guy, he leads a charge, too. He’s got a battery on him, and it’s fully charged.
“We’re missing a special player in the lineup that can help us, could have helped us tonight. But it is what it is. He’s dealing with stuff, so we’re going to do our best to compete every night, no matter who’s in the lineup.”
That seemed to be the sentiment throughout San Jose’s locker room. While clearly unhappy without their prized young prospect, the Sharks are determined to keep their collective chins up until he comes back.
That’s the type of attitude Warsofsky wanted to see.
It’s a no-brainer that when a team loses a marquee player, others need to step up and fill in the gap. Across the landscape of professional sports, however, some players can go overboard in that direction and try to do too much, which can lead to other problems.
That didn’t seem to be an issue Saturday.
Beyond a handful of players receiving extra ice time while Celebrini sat out, the Sharks still managed to play with a certain level of cohesiveness.
“We did a good job of that,” Warsofsky said. “We have to continue to work and find chemistry with some other lines and grow in that way. We have a great group in there, men of high character, that I don’t think that’s going to be a real issue. We’re motivated to continue to push forward and be competitive and start winning hockey games.”
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