Macklin Celebrini made sure one young Sharks fan went home with a souvenir, and he got half the section to help.
The newly named captain slid a puck through the photographers' hole in the glass. Then he started pointing.
He waved for fans to keep passing it to the right, seat by seat, until it reached a little kid. The section followed his directions perfectly.
This wasn't a random toss over the glass. Celebrini picked out one fan and made sure the puck found him.
The fans turned into a bucket brigade, hand to hand, all for one kid. Plenty of parents in that building will remember it longer than the score.
In the clip, the puck comes through the gap in the glass, the captain points down the row, and the fans pass it along until it lands in a small pair of hands.
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The 20-year-old captain already gets what San Jose needs
Celebrini is 20, wears No. 71 and carries a $975,000 cap hit. He opened the season with three assists in an overtime win over Florida.
One of those helpers came on the power play and another shorthanded. He's already doing a bit of everything for this team.
It also shows awareness. Spotting one small fan through the glass, in a full NHL arena, takes more attention than most players spare.
This is exactly what a captain looks like. Ryan Warsofsky and Mike Grier gave the letter to a 20-year-old, and moments like this show why it fits.
San Jose is 1-0-0, with Dallas waiting on Monday and St. Louis on Thursday.
The wins will come and go in San Jose this season. A kid with a puck from his favourite player becomes a fan for life, and Celebrini just recruited a whole section with him.
Is Macklin Celebrini already the right choice as Sharks captain?
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