Sharks president Becher reveals Celebrini's impact on business

Sheng Peng will be a regular contributor to NBC Sports California’s Sharks coverage. You can read more of his coverage on San Jose Hockey Now, listen to him on the San Jose Hockey Now Podcast, and follow him on Twitter at @Sheng_Peng.

The Sharks could leave San Jose in four years.

But Sharks Sports and Entertainment president Jonathan Becher is very optimistic about the team's future in San Jose and at SAP Center.

Becher spoke with the San Jose Hockey Now Podcast on Thursday about the Sharks’ future at their long-time home, the positive Macklin Celebrini effect on business, owner Hasso Plattner and more.

Here are some key takeaways from the wide-ranging interview, which also included a lengthy discussion about why it took the long-suffering Sharks so long to commence their rebuild.

Sharks Aren’t Leaving Bay Area

On July 1, 2025, the Sharks’ arena management agreement with the city of San Jose changes, “unfavorably” for the Sharks, according to Becher.

At that point, the Sharks do have the option to give three years notice to leave city-owned SAP Center.

The Sharks and the city of San Jose currently are working to amend their agreement.

“We're in very regular conversations with the city. We've had a fantastic relationship. A lot of Bay Area sports teams have not had very good relationships with their cities. We are not one of them,” Becher said. “Conversations are going well. If you ask me this today, July 11, 2024, I don't see much probability that we end up on [Jul. 1, 2025] in an unfavorable situation.”

Even if the Sharks’ arena management agreement with the city of San Jose remains unfavorable, Becher says the franchise will remain a Bay Area team.

“Hasso has been very clear. He's a Bay Area guy. He wants to stay in San Jose,” Becher said. “And if for some reason, this site doesn't work out, we would look at other places in San Jose first, and then, the rest of the Bay Area.”

Seen Hasso?

Becher pushed back on the notion that Plattner isn’t around the Sharks.

Famously elusive, Plattner hasn’t conducted a formal interview about the Sharks since 2016.

But Plattner was at 12-to-14 games last season, Becher estimated, and was spotted recently at the Prospects Scrimmage.

That said, it’s notable that Plattner hasn’t spoken at all in the last five seasons, as the team’s fortunes and attendance both sagged.

It’s always good to hear from the captain if your plane has hit some serious turbulence.

The SAP co-founder, 80, left the company this year, so maybe he has got more time now to directly address the fans.

There’s no doubt that Plattner cares about the Sharks — but I’m not sure if the fans know it.

Celebrini Good for Business

Celebrini, who played one year with the Jr. Sharks in 2019-20, isn’t a native son of the Bay Area.

But the Vancouver-born 18-year-old, whose father Rick Celebrini is the director of sports performance and medicine for the Golden State Warriors, has been treated like local royalty since the Sharks made him the No. 1 overall pick of the 2024 NHL Draft.

Becher, who has been Sharks president since 2018, outlined Celebrini’s immediate impact on business (and what he called the casual hockey fan) since San Jose drafted him on June 28:

• Roughly 3,300 fans attended the prospects scrimmage at Tech CU Arena, a 50 percent increase from last year’s prospects scrimmage, despite this year’s event being on Independence Day — this year’s prospects scrimmage was also a paid event, $18-40 a ticket, while last year’s July 6 scrimmage was free
• More than 23,000 people tuned into the prospects scrimmage stream — according to Becher, that’s about the number that might watch a typical Sharks’ weekday regular-season game online
• When Celebrini signed with the Sharks on July 6, the Sharks enjoyed a Becher-era record merchandise sales day — highlighted by the first sales of Celebrini’s No. 71 jersey — for a non-game day
• Since the Sharks’ 2024-25 season schedule was announced, Becher reported that the fastest-selling individual home games have been, in order, Nov. 23 (Joe Thornton’s jersey retirement night), Oct. 10 (Celebrini’s likely NHL debut in the Sharks’ season and home opener), and Oct. 31 (Halloween and Celebrini’s first home game against 2023 first-overall pick Connor Bedard) — Becher says individual tickets sales for the home opener are about 20 percent ahead of where they were last year
• While the Sharks won’t release complete season ticket sales numbers until September, Becher said the Sharks are already “well above” the number of season tickets sold last year — this is with about a month and a half to go in season ticket sales

After development camp, Sharks director of player development Todd Marchant praised Celebrini.

"He's given a buzz back to the San Jose Sharks organization," Marchant said.

Marchant wasn’t exaggerating. But now comes the hard part: Can Celebrini and the Sharks keep it going on the ice?

Sharks’ Steph Curry Moment?

The Warriors changed the course of their history when they selected Curry with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft.

Before Curry, the San Francisco/Golden State Warriors, since 1962, had only won one championship, in 1975.

Since Curry, the Warriors have won four titles, 2015, 2017, 2018, and 2022, and have become a global brand, on par with the Los Angeles Lakers, worldwide.

Becher made it clear that he wasn’t putting that kind of pressure on Celebrini, but when asked how one player can change a Bay Area sports team’s fortunes, Curry was the first example that he cited, followed by Joe Montana and the San Francisco 49ers.

Becher noted that it wasn’t just Curry who turned the Warriors around — Golden State drafted Klay Thompson in 2011 and Draymond Green in 2012.

In much the same way, Becher made sure to shout out some of the Sharks’ other young guns.

“We got [William] Eklund and [Fabian] Zetterlund and others, they’re no slouches," Becher said. "Will Smith has really turned into a player as well. [Sam] Dickinson signed his ELC. This isn't about just Macklin Celebrini. He's sort of the center of this, but I think you really ought to step back."

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