SAN JOSE – San Jose Sharks icon Joe Thornton has been in the shoes of both Macklin Celebrini and Ivar Stenberg.
Taken No. 1 overall by the Boston Bruins in the 1997 NHL draft, Thornton knows what it’s like to jump to the NHL at 18 with the sky-high expectations that come with being an early first-round selection.
That’s why Thornton was eager to help Celebrini and Stenberg make the transition to the hardest league in hockey by opening his home to them at the start of their NHL careers.
The now 20-year-old Celebrini, taken first overall in 2024 — a selection Thornton announced himself — lived with the Thornton family during his first two years with the Sharks. Now Stenberg, who turned 19 on Sept. 30, three months after the Sharks took him with the No. 2 overall pick in June’s draft, recently moved into Thornton’s South Bay residence.
“Whatever you can do to kind of help out,” Thornton told Bay Area News Group on Tuesday. “I know it’s hard. I went through it as an 18-year-old and stayed with people for a few years. It was beneficial for me not worrying about cooking and cleaning so much.
“You kind of give back a little, right? That’s what you’re supposed to do.”
Thornton was at SAP Center on Tuesday attending a media day event for the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame, as it was announced in August that he’ll be part of the hall’s Class of 2026. He’s joined Bay FC co-founder and former Santa Clara standout midfielder Leslie Osborne, legendary Stanford water polo player Brenda Villa and former Stanford and Cal men’s basketball coach Mike Montgomery.
Thornton is the sixth former Sharks player to receive the honor, joining Arturs Irbe (2010), Owen Nolan (2014), Doug Wilson (2016), Evgeni Nabokov (2018) and Patrick Marleau (2023).
George Gund III, the original Sharks owner, was part of the Class of 2008, and Wilson was the team’s general manager from 2003 to 2022.
This year’s induction ceremony will be on Nov. 19 at SAP Center.
“There’s going to be more (Sharks players) at the end of the day,” said Thornton, who was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame last year. “But to join (Marleau and Nabokov), it’s great, it really is, to share things like that with teammates.”
Stenberg has a slightly different personality than Celebrini, but Thornton said the young Swedish winger is starting to come out of his shell.
“Just a great boy,” Thornton said of Stenberg. “He doesn’t think he speaks English very well, but he does. But he’s just getting comfortable with the Bay Area, and he’s a (19-year-old) boy. He should be going to college. It’s crazy that he’s playing in the NHL. So he’s doing great; he really is.”
Joe Thornton, left, poses for a photo with Macklin Celebrini after being selected by the the San Jose Sharks with the first overall pick during the first round of the 2024 Upper Deck NHL Draft at Sphere on June 28, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Near the start of last season, Thornton was convinced Celebrini was already one of the NHL’s best players and told Pete DeBoer, the former Sharks coach and an assistant on Team Canada’s coaching staff for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, that the then-19-year-old deserved to be on the team.
“When you get to watch players that are the best at their craft, it’s just awesome,” Thornton said of Celebrini. “I just love watching him; I’m a big fan of his.”
Celebrini had 115 points last season, breaking Thornton’s single-season team scoring record of 114 set in 2006-07.
Last month, near the end of training camp, Thornton officially announced that Celebrini would be the Sharks’ next captain.
“I just think he’s such a great player already,” Thornton said of Celebrini. “I don’t put expectations on anybody, but he’s blown (away my) expectations multiple times. Just the way he plays and handles himself. He’s just incredible.”
With some foundational pieces in place, will the Sharks soon be in the mix to win the franchise’s first Stanley Cup?
“That’s the goal,” Thornton said. “It’s not easy, and a lot of things have to go right. You have to stay healthy. But they sure are fun to watch.”