The New York Rangers wrapped up their four‑game West Coast road trip in San Jose on Friday night, which meant a date with Macklin Celebrini — the early-career phenom already impressive enough to earn a spot on Team Canada’s Olympic roster.
Mike Sullivan's high praise for budding superstar came to fruition
Before puck drop, Rangers coach Mike Sullivan heaped praise on the 19‑year‑old Sharks superstar, saying San Jose, “has a young Sidney Crosby” and raving about Celebrini’s skill, work ethic, and maturity. Sullivan would know, he coached Crosby and the Penguins for a decade, winning back‑to‑back Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017.
And on this night, Celebrini lived up to every word. He delivered another electric, dynamic performance against the Blueshirts, factoring into every Sharks goal. The Rangers’ defense left far too many openings through the middle of the zone and played far too sloppy to even hope to contain a player of Celebrini’s stature.
The Rangers’ mediocre discipline and shaky defensive play picked up exactly where they left off in the previous three games. In the first period, Mika Zibanejad took yet another early penalty, and just 1:09 into the game, Hart Trophy candidate Macklin Celebrini buried the opening goal. Moments later, Matthew Robertson took a needless delay‑of‑game penalty, and 6'3" Pavol Regenda cashed in on the ensuing power play. That prompted an early timeout from Sullivan, who looked like he lit into his team.
Rangers woes are nothing new
It didn’t matter. This has been the theme all season: the Rangers don’t look ready to play, they don’t match the opponent’s energy, and they immediately fall into chase mode. A few minutes after the timeout, Celebrini struck again — his second of the night, his 26th of the season, and his fifth against the Rangers — ripping a blistering slapshot past Spencer Martin. Celebrini now has five goals and two assists for seven points in two games against the Blueshirts this season.
The Rangers took seven penalties in total (the most they have in 102 games), because they simply couldn’t match the Sharks’ speed or tenacity. San Jose is a team on the rise that looks hungry; the Rangers look like a team that has checked out. They failed to defend the middle of the ice, and the Sharks exploited it all night.
After a frantic first period, the game settled into a slower, less eventful second and third period. The Rangers played with more structure — they have no chance in a track meet with San Jose — but the early damage was already done. And it was too little too late again for the Rangers in their bid for a comeback win.
Predictably, the Rangers lost. You can’t win in the NHL when you never start on time, and their early implosion erased any chance of a competitive game. A 14‑game point streak against the Sharks died with it, too. In the end, they went down 3–1 at SAP Center.
And it doesn’t get any easier. The Rangers now head home to prepare for a Monday night matchup with the Boston Bruins — the same Bruins who beat them 10–2 earlier this month.