“Do You Know the Way to San Jose” remains a popular song. It’s catchy. It has a good beat. I has endured the test of time. First released in 1968 by singer Dionne Warwick, it also remains an homage to the California city.
Fast forward 56 years and Macklin Celebrini did find his way to San Jose. The No. 1 overall pick in this year’s NHL Entry Draft, Celebrini is also hoping to endure the test of time by having a very strong first pro season.
Like the song, the 18-year-old center in a Sharks uniform also marks a homecoming of sorts. In fact, the Vancouver native is no stranger to San Jose. As a child, he moved to California and played for the San Jose Junior Sharks AAA team. As a member of the U14 team, Celebrini featured in 54 games and amassed an astonishing 49 goals and 45 assists for 94 points.
In addition, Celebrini – nicknamed “The Cheetah” because of his speed – has added hype to card collecting this season. All No. 1 picks typically do. How he will do in the coming weeks and months will have a huge impact on his rookie card values. For starters, he had a goal and an assist in his first game at SAP Center, a 4-2 preseason loss on Sept. 22 to the Vegas Golden Knights.
In the hopes that Celebrini will be a favorite among collectors, Upper Deck signed Celebrini to an exclusive autograph deal back in July.
“We’re committed to bringing fans even closer to their favorite NHL players, and the addition of Celebrini reflects our dedication to showcasing both seasoned legends and emerging stars,” said Upper Deck President Jason Masherah. “We’re proud to represent him at such an exciting time in his career and look forward to capturing his success on the ice once he makes his NHL debut.”
I caught up with Celebrini at last month’s NHLPA Rookie Showcase, organized in conjunction with Upper Deck, in Arlington, Va. During his appearance there, Celebrini took the time to discuss the upcoming NHL season, playing alongside a former rival and his favorite hockey card ever.
I mean, we have a great young core. We got a lot of opportunities here in the future and it’s exciting to come in all together and start to build that chemistry. It’s an NHL team. There’s some really good players and they made some great moves this off season. I’m super excited for the group.
You will play alongside prospect Will Smith. You were foes last year when you played at Boston University, and he was at Boston College. What’s it like to be teammates?
I’ve played against him a bunch through the years and it’s good to finally be a teammate with him and play with him. He’s a great guy and getting to know him over the last couple weeks, it’s been awesome.
I have my expectations for myself. I’m not really comparing myself to other guys. I know what I can do and I’m just going to try to play my game, and I mean, I can’t really control the results of the outcome. So, I’m just going to focus on day-to-day and try to get better.
Does it help playing in a market where you once lived?
I didn’t spend too much time there, but I mean, there’s some familiarity there for sure. It helps. It helps knowing the area. I don’t know many people there or anything like that, but it definitely helps kind of knowing a little bit about the area.

You’re going to be sharing the ice with some players that you grew up watching like Alexander Ovechkin, Connor McDavid and Sidney Crosby. What are you looking forward to the most?
I think playing my first game, with the crowd and the whole deal, I feel like that’s going to be a pretty special moment for me and it’s going to hit me for sure.
Did you collect hockey cards growing up?
Yes. I have a binder at home.
Who were some of the players you collected? What’s the best card you own?
I have a really cool Bobby Orr one.
Is it Orr’s rookie card? What set or year is it from?
I don’t know. It just looks really cool.
Clemente Lisi is a lifelong Rangers fan who first started collecting cards in 1986. He collects both vintage and modern with a focus on rookie cards. Follow him on X/Twitter @ClementeLisi.
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Hockey is back! Go Sharks! Yesssss!!!!!