ST. PAUL, Minn. — The youngest player in college hockey is also the best player in college hockey, according to Hobey Baker Award voters.
Boston University freshman Macklin Celebrini was the 2024 winner of the Hobey Baker Award, announced Friday. At 17, he was the youngest player to win the award and was just the fourth freshman, following Paul Kariya (1993), Jack Eichel (2015) and last year’s winner, Adam Fantilli.
“I’m shaking right now,” said Celebrini. “It’s a surreal feeling to win this prestigious award. This is an honor to receive this and I’m truly humbled and grateful.”
The Vancouver, British Columbia, native tallied 32 goals and 32 assists in 38 games for the Terriers, whose season came to an end on Thursday in a 2-1 overtime loss to Denver in the Frozen Four.
“While we didn’t get to our goal, it was an amazing year,” said Celebrini. “As much on the ice as off the ice — all my teammates, my coaches, the staff that we had.
“Just amazing people that I was able to spend time with so I’m truly grateful for that opportunity.”
Celebrini thanked his coaches, teammates and family, including his brother Aiden, two years his senior but also a freshman for the Terriers.
“Same thing (for all of them), I couldn’t have done this without their support,” he said.
The Hobey Baker caps off a year for Celebrini that saw him named Hockey East player and rookie of the year as well as the recipient of the Tim Taylor Award for national rookie of the year.
“I’m really proud of him,” said BU coach Jay Pandolfo. “And, honestly, I’m not really surprised just because of what I saw from the second he stepped on our campus, his approach to the game, his preparation, how competitive he is, how he’s looking to get better every day, how much he cares about his teammates, how much he cares about winning. So it’s very impressive for a 17-year-old to do what he did this year.”
College hockey was always the path forward, according to Celebrini. He said it was an easy decision between college and major junior.
“It was more of a decision between which college was the right one for me,” he said. “(My year at BU) was really cool, being able to experience that every day with my brother and my whole team.”
No Hobey winner has ever gone No. 1 in the NHL draft but Celebrini is expected to change that in June. He’s at the top of the NHL Central Scouting’s midterm rankings.
When asked about his future plans, Celebrini said he hasn’t made up his mind.
“I haven’t really thought through it yet,” he said. “I’ve been more focused on this weekend.
“I don’t really know what’s going to go on in the next couple of months but it’s an exciting time and I’m looking forward to it.”
