San Jose Sharks
Will Smith on Playing Wing in NHL for 1st Time: ‘It’s whatever they want’
PHILADELPHIA — The San Jose Sharks have opened the door to Will Smith playing wing in the NHL.
Smith had played exclusively at center throughout his rookie campaign, going pointless in his first eight games, but coming on recently with two goals and one assist in his last four.
But on Monday at Wells Fargo Center, Smith made his NHL debut at wing, flanking Alex Wennberg with Barclay Goodrow.
“We’ve liked our three centers there with Macklin, Granny, and Wenny there. And Sturm,” San Jose Sharks head coach Ryan Warsofsky said about Macklin Celebrini, Mikael Granlund, Alex Wennberg, and Nico Sturm. “So try to give Will a different look on the wing.”
This was a different tune than the San Jose Sharks were singing a month ago.
“We’re not there yet. We’re going to continue to work with him as a center,” Warsofsky said about moving Will Smith to wing in mid-October. “His future, I believe, is in the middle. So, we’ve got to continue to work on that.”
Granted, that was just three games into the season.
Anyway, Smith’s future in the league may well be at center. But it’s good to see the San Jose Sharks being flexible. Smith, as he’s always maintained, says he’s open to the positional change.
“It’s obviously different jobs. But besides that, you got to know how to play each position and be ready for it,” Smith said. “I think I can play either one, it’s whatever they want to put me on, I’ll play. It’s something I want to be is versatile.”
The hope is likely to alleviate Smith’s defensive burden and open things up for him offensively. His recent scoring surge featured both a lightning shot release and deceptive playmaking, which perhaps we’ll see even more of on the wing.
Also, the Sharks’ best line-up is arguably Celebrini, Granlund, Wennberg, and Sturm at center.
However, it was a rough introduction to playing wing in the NHL for Smith.
Erik Johnson punches it home 🚨 🥊 pic.twitter.com/mL7nWv3UyO
— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) November 12, 2024
On his first shift, Smith (2) was doing the right thing covering for a pinching Jan Rutta (84) — when a defenseman attacks, it’s the forward’s responsibility to back him up.
However, Smith was too aggressive creeping down for offense, and then hesitated on the backcheck.
“I got stopped up and took a look, and by that time, they were already gone,” Smith admitted. “It was on me there. Obviously, I need to be better there.”
Playing wing might mean less defensive responsibility, but not none.
Anyway, changing positions in the fastest league in the world isn’t easy. Smith has played wing at times before but doesn’t have a wealth of experience on it.
Hopefully?
“You’re slashing more to the neutral zone and different jobs off the faceoff, so I get a little more speed,” Smith said about wing.
As always, give the 19-year-old time.
“Thought he did some things, made some plays, and at times he struggled. Got to play with a little bit more pace without the puck,” Warsofsky said. “But big learning curve for him against a heavy team.”
He seems to understand the game and the roles very well and at times executes very well. I truly think it’s just the learning curve because when he’s doing what he’s supposed to and confidently you can see a really elite player in there. I can’t wait until he plays like that all the time.
I agree. At times I think fans like us can get a bit impatient with a young player’s development. Thrun is in the same boat (as is Thompson). They will all have their ups and downs (like Eklund has as well this season) for the first couple seasons but we hope to see more consistent good play over time. IMO Smith has incrementally gotten better in his play as the season has progressed and looks more comfortable playing in the NHL. At times, he seems to play slow, almost like he is running out of gas. To me that is… Read more »
That’s nice and all, but the guy who doesn’t even speak English yet has 12 points in 14 games.
Michkov could have been a better choice.
You know this from all your years as a pro scout? Or do you have a time machine and already know?
It was pretty clear he wanted to play in Philly. Would he have been the better choice if he Cutter’d us? Could have been a wasted draft pick.
Doesn’t mean he’ll be the better player in the long run. Go look at Jumbo’s rookie year in Boston. He had like 6 points and his teammate Samsonov won the Calder. Who had the better career? Less than 20 games in is a dumb time to make pronouncements on which was the better pick.
Something to keep in mind about his conditioning – he’s being asked to pack on weight. He’s eating a ton more calories and probably working out harder than he ever has. During that transition, it stands to reason that his body isn’t going to be at peak performance levels. Once he gets to his target weight and moves into more of a maintenance mode, I think we’ll see his stamina increase as well as him getting used to playing with a heavier body. That will probably come with regaining some of his quickness and top end speed, both which he… Read more »
I agree with what you have stated. I watched most all of his games in the NCAA last year and he was more than other teams could handle once he got going. I think fans should remember, he was a rookie in the NCAA last season and now is a rookie in the NHL. That is one heck of a jump in two years (from the development team to the NHL). In the end I believe he will be a very good to elite second line center. We as fans just need to be patient. He is a fun player… Read more »
People forget his draft scouting reports. He was projected to be an elite 1st line center and was often compared to Kucherov as far as style of play. He’s done nothing so far to disprove those lofty prognostications. It’s just going to take some time. His 3rd year he’s a good bet to be a force in his own right and teams will be shitting themselves when they have to deal with either him or Celly on the ice 4/4s of the game each night. Just imagine when they start running PP1 together, potentially with a guy like Haltunen in… Read more »
Great point. I’m sure they’re doing what they can to help him recover from his work outs but he has to be lifting pretty heavy if they want him to bulk up during the season. He’s gotta be at least somewhat sore thru all this.
He looks like he just saw a ghost in that picture lol
I like giving Smith different experiences. Even if he was doing well at C, having him spend time on the wing gives him understanding of what the challenges are at that position. And it’ll make him a better C. Thing is, you can’t give a player, any player, this sort of experience with just a game or 2. Guys like Pavs and Hertl spent bunches of time both as C and W. And became good at both. I’ll always like Pavs mindset. He’d been a winger for a good while and was being moved to center for a game. So… Read more »
You can tell that Will is still thinking about a lot of his decisions, and eventually he’ll feel comfortable enough for his instincts to take over. The first Philly goal last night was a perfect example. He made the right and smart decision at every stage. He covered for a pinching defender. He stepped up on a loose puck, then thought better of it, then worked hard to get back. Every decision just came with a moment of brief hesitation, and that’ll get ironed out over time. He’s obviously very coachable, very aware, and wants to do the right thing.… Read more »
Agree on all. Other than Celly, he’s the prospect I’m worried least about.
The first rebuild I really watched with interest (Sharks weren’t watchable) was the Quebec Nordiques. Great drafting team in the late 80s, early 90s. Lindros, Sakic, Sundin, Nolan, Thibault, Deadmarsh, Drury, Hedjuk, Foote, Tim Thomas. The Lindros and to a lesser degree the Nolan trades got them the pieces to win the cup so everyone should keep in mind that guys you love now could very easily be traded for bigger pieces if someone becomes available that’s in the right age group. Interesting similarities to this Sharks rebuild…They drafted heavy on forwards in the early rounds and traded for all… Read more »
Have to agree w/ Warso, Celebrini-Granlund-Wennberg-Sturm is the best winning Center lineup the Sharks can ice. Moving Smith to the Wing is a good move for team success.