It may be early in 2026 but Macklin Celebrini may have handed out the best assist of the entire year on Thursday night.
The San Jose Sharks forward was working behind the net - and we do mean working, gaining and losing possession a handful of times - before nabbing the disc for just long enough to fire a no-look, between-the-legs pass to wide open teammate Pavol Regenda for a goal.
Celebrini was mixing it up with Washington Capitals forward Nic Dowd and defenseman Matt Roy. He got the puck away from Dowd, then Roy snuck in and knocked it back to Dowd. Sharks forward Collin Graf joined the fray, poking the puck away from Dowd and back toward Celebrini again.
Celebrini barely had the puck for a half-second when he dished it backwards between his own legs to a wide open Regenda who beat Capitals goalie Logan Thompson on the far side.
So just a pair of weeks into the new year and we may have already seen the best assist the year has to offer. Unless, of course, Celebrini has plans to top this one.
