It’s debatable as to whether the San Jose Sharks can make the playoffs this season without forward Will Smith making a major contribution. Certainly, the Sharks’ path would be a lot easier if Smith were to become a regular presence on the scoresheet over their final 16 games.

What is less questionable is that the Sharks need the ultra-skilled Smith to maximize his potential if they want not only to be a regular playoff presence in the years ahead, but also to challenge for the Stanley Cup.

After some lackluster play, Smith was benched for noticeable portions of the Sharks’ 5-3 loss to the Edmonton Oilers at Rogers Place, and it’ll be interesting to see how he and his teammates respond Thursday when they face the Atlantic Division-leading Buffalo Sabres to start a two-game homestand.

Remarkably, even after a 2-3-0 road trip, the Sharks will enter Thursday just one point out of a playoff spot, the same as they were when they left San Jose last Monday. With 70 points, the Sharks (32-28-6) are one point back of the Seattle Kraken, which holds the second wild card spot in the Western Conference.

The Sharks, Kraken, and Los Angeles Kings each have a .530 points percentage.

“Every game is a playoff game now. Every game matters,” said Sharks goalie Alex Nedeljkovic, who stopped 32 of 37 shots in Tuesday’s loss. “We need to be at our best or close to our best every single night that we can here.

“If we’re not picking up points, someone else is.”

Smith turned 21 on Tuesday and, to be sure, has had better birthdays.

With the Sharks trying to cut into the Oilers’ two-goal lead late in the third period, coach Ryan Warsofsky pulled goalie Nedeljkovic and had six attackers on the ice. None of whom were named Will Smith.

So the Sharks’ second-leading scorer watched from the bench for over a minute before Kiefer Sherwood tripped Connor McDavid with 1:49 left in regulation time.

It was academic from there, as the Sharks went on to close out an eight-day road trip with a losing record, while missing an opportunity to move within three points of the Oilers with three games in hand.

“We went with the guys that were going,” Warsofsky said when asked about his 6-on-5 deployment, which also included keeping Tyler Toffoli on the bench. “That’s for sure.”

Smith actually only had three shifts in the third period and finished with 13:27 in ice time, his second-smallest figure of the season, although some of that had to do with the Sharks only getting one power play opportunity.

Still, Smith was taken off the Sharks’ top line alongside Macklin Celebrini and replaced by Michael Misa at times during the second period. Smith then stayed on the bench for the first 4:30 of the third period – two minutes of which were spent killing a Celebrini tripping penalty – before he got his first shift.

On that shift, and with the game tied 3-3, the Oilers got the puck in the corner to the left of the Sharks’ net. After a shot on net, Oilers forward Max Jones got position on Sharks defenseman John Klingberg and tucked the rebound past Nedeljkovic for the go-ahead goal.

Smith had two more shifts the rest of the way. He finished the game with one shot on net and has now gone without a point in four straight games, although he remains second on the Sharks with 45 points in 53 games.

Warsofsky, of course, wants to see Smith take his game to another level and meet the challenge that the last four weeks of the regular season will undoubtedly bring.

But like a lot of players with similar experience, Smith is still learning to consistently find ways to contribute even when he’s not scoring.

While this year remains important, so, too, is the long term. It seems Warsofsky is also keeping that in mind as he sets a standard for how he wants his players to play, particularly those who will be in San Jose for a while, and holds them accountable when they fall short.

Warsofsky said Tuesday he rewarded players who “got on pucks, blocked shots, laid it on the line, put it behind the defensemen, forechecked, did things at this time of the season that you have to do to win hockey games. So we went with the guys who were going.

“For four years, we’ve worked on development and getting guys better, kind of handing some things to some players. You’ve got to earn your ice from here on out.”