Canadiens could clash with Celebrini and the Sharks on February 4

The first clash between the Montreal Canadiens and San Jose Sharks, along with their first overall pick, Macklin Celebrini, could happen in the fifth month of the 2024-25 season.

It will all depend on what Celebrini and the Sharks decide is the best decision for his future. If he opts to return to Boston University for his sophomore season to play alongside Cole Eiserman and Lane Hutson's younger brother Cole, then it will have to wait until the 2025-26 season. But, should Celebrini sign with the Sharks and forego his college career, the Sharks and Habs matchup could be a fun one to watch.

San Jose is very young and the core of William Eklund, Thomas Bordeleau and Celebrini will be looking to lead the Sharks back to calmer waters. Montreal is a little farther ahead in their rebuild, but the young core of Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield and Juraj Slafkovsky will intrigue the fans. With young talent brimming out of both rosters, it will be a matchup you won't want to miss.

Two former Terriers could clash

If my assumption is correct then Hutson will be slotted into the Habs lineup full-time for the 2024-25 season. So, if Celebrini does decide to play in San Jose, then the former teammates will be part of the little rivalries within the game. Both players know each other particularly well, but I'm confident that they won't still make one another look silly with open ice.

Hutson dominated college over the last two seasons from the blueline and during his two-game NHL stint he looked anything but out of place. If you ask anybody who watched Celebrini play, they will tell you he was the best player in the entire league, whether he was awarded the Hobey Baker award or not, which he was. With that said, it seems most likely that Celebrini will play in the NHL and clash against Hutson and the Canadiens' own 2022 first-overall selection, Juraj Slafkovsky.

The most intriguing thing about the league is that games that used to be not so interesting to watch, namely against the Sharks. Will become intriguing because of high-octane talents like Eklund and Celebrini operating the offence. I haven't even factored in Will Smith and Quentin Musty up front and Henry Thrun, Shakir Mukhamadullin and Ty Emberson on the back end.