Sharks Celebrini Has Shot at Making Calder Trophy History

There have been 61 players selected first overall at the NHL Draft, with the Montreal Canadiens making Garry Monahan the first pick in 1963 and the San Jose Sharks recently selecting Hobey Baker Award winner Macklin Celebrini in 2024.

Interestingly, out of the 61 players drafted first overall, only 12 have captured the Calder Trophy as the NHL Rookie of the Year, with the most recent winner being Connor Bedard, the top pick from the 2023 Draft. 

Considering the hype surrounding Celebrini and the fact that he made the Sharks lineup out of training camp, the 18-year-old has a chance to achieve something only accomplished once in NHL history: become the second first-overall pick to win the Calder Trophy following a previous first-overall pick.

Calder Trophy and First Overall Pick History

The Calder Trophy is one of the oldest trophies in the NHL. It was awarded for the first time after the 1936-37 season. Considering the NHL Amateur Draft didn't begin until 1963, no first-overall pick won Rookie of the Year honors until 1971, when Hall of Famer Gilbert Perreault (Buffalo Sabres) accomplished the feat.

Here's a look at other top picks who won the Calder Trophy before the lockout of the 2004-05 season:

• 1974 - Dennis Potvin (New York Islanders) HHOF
• 1979 - Bobby Smith (Minnesota North Stars)
• 1982 - Dale Hawerchuk (Winnipeg Jets) HHOF
• 1985 - Mario Lemieux (Pittsburgh Penguins) HHOF
• 1997 - Bryan Berard (New York Islanders)

Outside the decades-long gap from 1995 to 1997, first-overall picks winning the Calder Trophy happened roughly every three to five years. Since the NHL returned from the lockout campaign that wiped out an entire season, first-overall picks have had more success in bunches recently. 

First, Alex Ovechkin edged out Sidney Crosby for the Calder Trophy in 2006, while Patrick Kane took home the honors in 2008. Half a decade later, Nathan MacKinnon won Rookie of the Year in 2014, while Aaron Ekblad followed him the following season in 2015.

MacKinnon and Ekblad are the only first-overall picks to win the Calder Trophy in back-to-back years. Realistically, had it not been for undrafted Artemi Panarin winning in 2016, first-overall picks could have gone four consecutive seasons since Auston Matthew took top honors in 2017.

Even though Bedard became the first top pick to win in seven seasons, there's an argument that the run of Calder Trophy winners from 2014-2017 is one of the best stretches for first-overall picks winning NHL hardware in their first seasons.

Sharks Celebrini Chasing History

Meanwhile, Celebrini is looking to defy the odds in San Jose and become the first Sharks player to win the Calder Trophy since netminder Evgeni Nabokov in 2000-01. That season, the 25-year-old beat out future Hall of Famers like Daniel Sedin and Roberto Luongo in voting. 

Celebrini's quest for immortality won't be easy, especially since he missed 12 games due to injury. San Jose went 3-8-1 without their young star, but they are 2-1-1 with him in the lineup. He has three goals and four points through four games, ranking 11th in rookie scoring.

Logan Stankoven (Dallas Stars), Matvei Michkov (Philadelphia Flyers), and Lane Hutson (Montreal Canadiens) are the only three players to reach double digits in rookie scoring and have a considerable headstart over Celebrini, who has ground to make up in a tough Western Conference.

Despite the Sharks projecting to be a bottom-three team again this year, Bedard led the Blackhawks to a 31st-place finish last year and missed 14 games due to a broken jaw. Chicago went 3-10-1 in his absence, but he returned and led the team in scoring 61 points in 68 games. 

The race for the Calder Trophy is still in its early stages, but some players are starting to separate themselves from the rest of the pack. There is plenty of time for Celebrini to bounce back and get himself back into the scoring race. 

If he manages to pull it off over the next 66 games, he will make NHL history and achieve something so few have ever gotten a chance to accomplish: win the Calder Trophy as a first-overall pick the year after a former first-overall pick.