Photos: Sharks stars promote reading at elementary school in San Jose

San Jose Sharks stars Macklin Celebrini, Will Smith and Zack Ostapchuk along with Rebecca Johnston, a Canadian Olympic medalist in women’s ice hockey, visited classrooms at Walter L. Bachrodt Elementary School. The San Jose Sharks and the Sharks Foundation hosted a literacy-focused event as part of Reading is Cool powered by the Sharks Foundation, the organizations youth literacy initiative.

Celebrini and Smith read “The Home Team: The San Jose Sharks” by Holly Preston and James Hearne, while Johnston read “I Can Play Too” by Cammi Granato.

“It’ll be super cool,” Smith said. “I remember being in middle school and elementary school and having different professional people come in.”

Smith, a Massachusetts native who turns 21 this month, said some players with the Boston Bruins visited his classroom with the Stanley Cup after they won the trophy in 2011, and members of the Boston Red Sox came by his school after they won the World Series in 2013.

The event wrapped up with a Q&A hosted by Dan Rusanowsky, a play-by-play announcer for the Sharks. Students asked the players about their favorite books and how to play hockey.