The Sharks future is bright thanks to a young core led by Macklin Celebrini

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — The multiyear rebuild era for the San Jose Sharks is complete. After making a surprising push for the playoffs that lasted to the final week of the season, the young Sharks now appear poised to make that next step back to the postseason behind budding superstar Macklin Celebrini .

“I mean obviously it’s disappointing,” Celebrini said about finishing four points out of the final wild-card spot. “We didn’t make playoffs and we were right there. We knew we could have done it and that stings a little bit.

But I think you got to look at the positives. We made a lot of big strides as a group, and we played some good hockey. ” The 39 wins for the Sharks equaled the team's total from the previous two seasons combined and revitalized a fan base that had grown apathetic during a tear down and rebuild.

The Shark Tank was frequently packed with attendance increasing by nearly 2,000 fans per game thanks to 24 sellouts as the young core led by Celebrini caught the attention of the Bay Area market. After losing the first six games of the seasons, the Sharks battled back and were in playoff position at times in March before a six-game losing streak late that month pushed them down the standings and a three-game skid in April ultimately doomed them. The team finished with 86 points and increased its scoring by 41 goals thanks in large part to a record-setting season by Celebrini .