San Jose Sharks one two punch center Macklin Celebrini (71) and center Will Smith (2) celebrate Celebrini’s tenth goal of the season in the first period at SAP Center in San Jose on Sat Nov 8, 2025 (AP News photo)
By Lincoln Juarez
SAN JOSE, Calif. – SAP Center was rocking as the San Jose Sharks took down the back-to-back champion Florida Panthers thanks to a tremendous night on the penalty kill and Yaraslov Askarov turning away all but one shot he faced. Macklin Celebrini scored in his third straight game with his 10th of the season. As the Sharks pocket another big victory the second on back to back nights this time with a 3-1 win over the Panthers.
Coming off of a gritty 2-1 win Friday night against the Winnipeg Jets, the Sharks took the ice looking to sweep the set of back-to-back games on Saturday. The back-to-back Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers stood as the tough task in the way of the Sharks. Both teams entered Saturday night with 15 points but the Panthers were heavily favored.
A spirited team teal played hard on the puck from the start, generating many scoring opportunities from the minute the puck dropped. The Sharks outshot the Panthers 14-6 in the first period including Macklin Celebrini’s 10th goal of the season to put the Sharks in the lead. Celebrini is atop the league list in scorers with 24 points on the young season. The young superstar has hammered the gas to start the season with no plans to slow down.
Linemate Will Smith found himself with the assist on Celebrini’s goal, as the two teamed up to net one for the second night in a row. It was Smith’s ninth assist of the year racking up 15 points just 16 games in.
The young core has sparked much excitement around San Jose, sending waves through the league while winning their third game in a row Saturday night and their sixth of the last eight. “I think we just feel like we can win any game,” said Mario Ferraro who blocked three shots in 22:44 time on ice and played a big part of the Sharks penalty kill that kept the Panthers scoreless as they went 0-for-5 on the man advantage.
An even bigger part of the penalty kill was Yaraslov Askarov, who stopped 38 of 39 shots and made some important saves in the third period. San Jose has boasted great goaltending in this recent stretch and both men in the crease have received great praise from the skaters in front of them.
Macklin Celebrini spoke very highly of Askarov and Nedeljkovic saying, “They’re doing such a great job for us… just making saves when we need them to… you say your goalie is your best penalty killer and they have been”.
The Sharks were not only great in their defensive end Saturday night, but also played a lot of valuable minutes in the offensive zone, racking up 23 shots on goal and cashing in on an Adam Gaudette deflection on a wrister from Dmitry Orlov in the second period to make it a 2-0 San Jose lead.
Brad Marchand answered back for the Panthers just seconds later to bring Florida within a goal but that was the closest they would get. The Sharks stayed strong defensively with sticks and bodies in every shooting and passing lane, blocking a total of 18 shots.
The display of inspired hockey lit up SAP Center Saturday night with a nearly sold out crowd making a strong impression on the team. “This was awesome. This was awesome spirit, I mean, I was like jeez… The boys love it. The team feels it”, described Yaraslov Askarov. When asked if he felt excitement growing around the Sharks, Askarov simply replied, “Yes”.
Capped off by an Alex Wennberg empty-netter, the Sharks won one of their most spirited games of the season, taking down the back-to-back champs 3-1. The excitement was definitely felt inside of SAP Center with high hopes for the upcoming stretch of the season.
The Sharks will be back in action Tuesday night in Minnesota and hope to just keep swimming through this fiery stretch of winning hockey.