The kids are pretty good.
The Sharks are one of the youngest teams in the NHL, but you wouldn’t have known it watching Saturday night’s 6-3 win over the Vancouver Canucks.
The fourth-youngest team in the league came out firing in the first period, building a two-goal lead that ensured they would never trail.
Vancouver was game for a challenge. The Canucks cut the deficit to one three separate times, yet on each occasion, San Jose augmented the cushion with another goal.
In the process, the Sharks showed a level of maturity that indicates they could be a playoff team this season.
San Jose Sharks' Macklin Celebrini (71) and Vancouver Canucks' Conor Garland (8) vie for the puck during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Vancouver, British Columbia, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (Ethan Cairns/The Canadian Press via AP)Their best player, Macklin Celebrini, is 19 years old but plays like he’s 29. He had two more points Saturday night, including a no-look highlight-reel one-timer that pushed the lead back to two late in the third period.
Igor Chernyshov, the middle child of the top line at 20, scored his first NHL goal and added an assist to clinch his first multi-point game.
And William Eklund, the top-line elder statesman at 23, broke out of a four-game pointless drought with a goal in the second period. He added an assist on Celebrini’s goal to give each top liner a pair of points.
Collin Graf, who dropped down to the second line to help Eklund get going, kept his point streak alive with an empty-net goal with 3:05 to play. Graf, 23, pushed his goal-scoring streak to four games and his point streak to six.
VANCOUVER, CANADA - DECEMBER 27: Mario Ferraro #38 of the San Jose Sharks takes out Marco Rossi #93 of the Vancouver Canucks along the side board during the first period of NHL action at Rogers Arena on December 27, 2025 in Vancouver, Canada. (Photo by Rich Lam/Getty Images)With the win, the Sharks moved into the second wild card spot in the Western Conference. Right now, San Jose is a playoff team.
There’s more than half the season to go. But the way the Sharks responded Saturday after getting blown out by Vegas on Tuesday indicates that this young group could have something special brewing.
“We responded, which I feel like for the most part we have,” Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky told reporters after Saturday’s game. “But now, it’d be nice to get this thing going here.”
San Jose showed against Vancouver that it has the gear that takes teams deep into April and beyond. Celebrini, who is driving the Sharks’ rebuild forward at warp speed, thinks they have even more in the tank.
San Jose Sharks' Macklin Celebrini (71) and Vancouver Canucks' Elias Pettersson (40) collide during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Vancouver, British Columbia, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (Ethan Cairns/The Canadian Press via AP)“That’s the group we have now,” he said. “Our responses and the way we’re playing, it resembles more of a consistent hockey team compared to last year. We have 18 wins right now, and we had 20 all of last year. We’re taking strides in the right direction. We have to keep it going. Not have any nights like the one in Vegas.”
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“This wasn’t gonna be an easy game to play,” Reaves said. “Flying this morning, having three days off. I thought we responded really well. We played in structure, didn’t give up a ton, came out with a win.”
Their next challenge? Running a three-game gauntlet of likely playoff teams in Anaheim, Minnesota and Tampa Bay.
“When we’re skating and we’re playing with structure and we’re competing, we’re a hard team to play against,” Warsofsky said. “We’ve seen that this year, we just got to do it consistently. So hopefully that’s a good blueprint. We’ve had some in the past. They’re not all gonna be perfect. There’s gonna be moments in your game where you got to get it back on the rails there a little bit. I thought we did a good job of that tonight.”
VANCOUVER, CANADA - DECEMBER 27: Goalie Yaroslav Askarov #30 of the San Jose Sharks looks to cover up the loose puck while John Klingberg #3 ties up Evander Kane #91 of the Vancouver Canucks during the first period of NHL action at Rogers Arena on December 27, 2025 in Vancouver, Canada. (Photo by Rich Lam/Getty Images)Hence then, the article about sharks ace post christmas test are playoffs next was published today ( ) and is available on mercury news ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
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