Sharks’ Macklin Celebrini named EA Sports NHL 27 cover athlete
One of the top young stars in the game today is being placed at the forefront of one of the longest-standing video game franchises of all time.
On Tuesday, EA Sports announced that San Jose Sharks forward Macklin Celebrini will be the cover athlete for NHL 27, becoming the youngest player to don the cover at just 19.
Celebrini becomes just the second Shark ever to grace the franchise’s cover, which was first released in 1991, the same season the Sharks came into existence. Former San Jose legend Owen Nolan was the cover athlete for NHL 2001.
In just two short years, Celebrini has had a significant impact on the team in the Bay Area, and the game as a whole. After a respectable rookie campaign, the Vancouver native was dynamite for a Sharks team that tried to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in seven years. Despite coming up short of grabbing a Wild Card spot in the Western Conference, Celebrini established himself as one of the league’s top offensive weapons. With 45 goals and 70 assists in 82 games, the 20-year-old finished fourth in the NHL with 115 points.
On top of that, Celebrini had a pair of significant performances on the world stage. He cracked Canada’s roster for the 2026 Winter Olympics and was arguably the team’s second-best player behind Connor McDavid. In six games, he scored five goals and 10 points, leading all skaters in goals, while finishing second behind McDavid in tournament scoring. The duo helped Canada reach the gold medal game, ultimately losing to the United States in overtime.
Celebrini was back wearing the maple leaf again in the spring, captaining Canada at the IIHF Men’s World Championship. Though his team failed to medal in Switzerland, Celebrini registered six goals and 14 points in 10 games, finished second in the event in points and tied for third in goals. With that, he was named the 2026 IIHF Male Player of the Year.
