SPECULATION: Friedman Talks Celebrini Extension, Sharks Chose Nurse Over Rielly & More

Elliotte Friedman had lots of interesting San Jose Sharks tidbits in his end-of-season episode of his 32 Thoughts Podcast.

Perhaps the most interesting was his speculation about Macklin Celebrini’s extension.

Celebrini is eligible for an extension this summer, and if the San Jose Sharks don’t sign him before next Jul. 1, he could receive an offer sheet next off-season a la the $18 million AAV bombshell that Leo Carlsson signed with the Philadelphia Flyers last week.

Friedman asserted that the Sharks will sign Celebrini by next Jul. 1.

That’s no surprise: San Jose knows how valuable their 20-year-old center is and won’t allow a repeat of the Carlsson debacle.

But how much will Celebrini make?

“This is the way that this conversation will go with San Jose,” Friedman speculated. “They’re going to say, ‘Macklin, you deserve the max…on the ice, off the ice. You deserve it one billion percent.’”

The most one player can make, under the current CBA, is 20 percent of the salary. That’s $20.8 million AAV of a $104 million cap in 2026-27 or $22.6 million AAV of a $113 million cap in 2027-28.

No player has ever been a maximum AAV player, but the superstar center, just 20 and a Hart Trophy candidate and Olympic star last year, is pretty much as good a candidate as we’ve ever seen in the salary cap era.

Of course, rostering a maximum AAV player could make it harder for the San Jose Sharks to build a Stanley Cup winner around him.

Friedman continued, speculating in his Sharks front office voice: “‘Is there any way we can sign you without giving [the max] to you? So we can do some things around you.’”

Carlsson’s $18 million AAV will make him the highest-paid player in NHL history. It sounds like Celebrini’s next contract has the makings to be another industry standard-setter.

Friedman’s end-of-season podcast is well worth the listen, here’s a rundown of other Sharks-related highlights, but listen for more detail:

He couldn’t confirm but believes that the San Jose Sharks were willing to give Bo Byram a four-year, $56 million contract, had they been able to acquire him via trade.

The Sharks preferred Darnell Nurse to Morgan Rielly, when choosing between the two 30-something veteran defensemen, each signed until 2030. He also spoke about other teams who were interested in Nurse.

Friedman believes that San Jose could still be seeking to add a power play quarterback to their mix.

Friedman was also surprised by the shorter length of Jacob Trouba’s four-year pact, heard that Mason Marchment received a slightly higher AAV offer in free agency, and talked more about how the Vancouver Canucks wanted Igor Chernyshov for Kiefer Sherwood last year.

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