Many fans wish for it — and some seem to demand it — but no NHL general manager is going to be perfect with their moves and decision-making. That includes San Jose’s Mike Grier, who shouldn’t be held up for GM sainthood.In his quest to guide the Sharks toward becoming playoff contenders and, eventually, Stanley Cup threats, Grier has added Kiefer Sherwood, Mason Marchment, Michael Kesselring, Jacob Trouba and Darnell Nurse to the roster over the past seven months, much-discussed moves that may or may not have the desired impact.But Grier has connected on a lot of his swings since he took over in 2022 and put the franchise through a necessary rebuild that included some of the worst seasons in club history. Now, after the signing of Macklin Celebrini to a landmark contract extension on Wednesday, he has the Sharks at an ideal juncture in their building process.It is time for liftoff in San Jose.How this 19-year-old became his team’s best playerHarman DayalThe clock has started for the Sharks to win, now that their future is secure with Celebrini, the 20-year-old prodigy who has become the league’s brightest young superstar in just two seasons. In this summer of monstrous contracts for young stars, the two sides agreed on something sensible. Grier indicated that he sees Celebrini as a leading man, while Celebrini didn’t push to be the NHL’s first $20 million AAV player.With an exploding salary cap, who’s to say that Celebrini shouldn’t have been paid that much? He’s coming off a season in which he eclipsed Hall of Famer Joe Thornton by scoring the most points by a Sharks player in a single season. With 115 points, Celebrini finished fourth in voting for the Hart Trophy after nearly dragging San Jose to the playoffs, and with more seasons like that, he will remain in the Hart conversation for a long time.Based on an extension that’ll mostly be paid out in annual bonuses, Celebrini will top $20 million in the first three years before his salary decreases, which will bring down the AAV. But he could have the “highest-paid player” throne by the time the extension kicks in to start the 2027-28 season — unless superstars Cale Makar and Quinn Hughes eclipse that. And the five-year term means the Sharks and Celebrini are betting on both to reach new heights by the time Celebrini is ready for his next contract in 2032 at age 26.