{"id":272005,"date":"2026-04-17T04:31:24","date_gmt":"2026-04-17T04:31:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/272005\/"},"modified":"2026-04-17T04:31:24","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T04:31:24","slug":"how-will-smith-improved-game-in-sharks-2025-26-nhl-season-nbc-sports-bay-area-california","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/272005\/","title":{"rendered":"How Will Smith improved game in Sharks\u2019 2025-26 NHL season \u2013 NBC Sports Bay Area & California"},"content":{"rendered":"

CHICAGO \u2014 Will Smith is a much better player<\/a> than he was in his rookie year.<\/p>\n

The sophomore Sharks star also is just 21, so he has a ways to go before he hits his prime.<\/p>\n

Smith has 23 goals and 57 points in just 67 games during the 2025-26 NHL season<\/a>, a big step from 17 goals and 45 points in 74 games last year.<\/p>\n

Smith\u2019s improvement hasn\u2019t just been simply on the scoresheet, either.<\/p>\n

Smith, Macklin Celebrini, Alex Wennberg, Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky, NHL scouts, and Stathletes micro-stats explain how the No. 4 pick of the 2023 draft has improved.<\/p>\n

\u201cMore assertive offensively,\u201d Scout No. 1 said.<\/p>\n

Everyone can see that Smith is more confident<\/a> with the puck than he was last season, and the micro-stats back it up.<\/p>\n

Zone Entries<\/p>\n

Smith is creating a lot more offense on a typical 5-on-5 zone entry now.<\/p>\n

According to Stathletes, he\u2019s an 89 percentile expected threat among all NHL forwards on a zone entry now, far more dangerous than last year\u2019s 65 percentile.<\/p>\n

Entries xThreat are \u201cexpected goals created (from passing or carrying) off of zone entry attempts.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that’s something that he’s worked on and understands when he has time to make a play and when he doesn’t, and he’s got real good feel for that,\u201d Warsofsky said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s definitely intentional,\u201d Smith said. \u201cLast year was my first year playing wing, so you obviously don’t get more puck touches coming through the middle, as you do as a center. So this year, I wanted to have more controlled entries.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe’ve seen it all year that he can make those plays off entries,\u201d Warsofsky said. \u201cHe’s done a really good job of, I think the game has probably slowed down for him to make those plays. His vision is elite.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt sets up a lot,\u201d Smith said. \u201cI think when you’re delaying off a zone entry, it definitely creates more than just chipping it in. But there’s a time and place for everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

Puck Carries<\/p>\n

You don\u2019t need to be a bull in a china shop to attack the most dangerous areas of ice.<\/p>\n

The crafty 6-foot Smith is learning where and when to slip into the soft spots at 5-on-5.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you’re in tight, you gotta get your head up and find where everyone is,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Smith is a 96 percentile forward in Slot Carries and 80 percentile in Inner Slot Carries, according to Stathletes, a much higher volume than last year\u2019s 79 and 57 percentiles, respectively.<\/p>\n

Because Smith isn\u2019t the most physical of forwards, there\u2019s a perception that he\u2019s a perimeter player, which isn\u2019t the case.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou get a lot of offense just kind of within that five feet from the net,\u201d Smith said. \u201cA lot of goals come from there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Puck Recovery<\/p>\n

More subtle, but still important, Smith is creating a lot more offense off 5-on-5 puck recoveries.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s a 77 percentile expected threat on a puck recovery now, a significant improvement from last year\u2019s 41 percentile.<\/p>\n

Recovery xThreat is \u201cexpected goals created by recovering loose pucks\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen he’s skating, he’s engaged, that’s when he’s usually making plays,\u201d Warsofsky said.<\/p>\n

Shooting<\/p>\n

Smith is sniffing out soft spots in the OZ like a truffle pig.<\/p>\n

\u201cQuiet, then finds open ice,\u201d Scout No. 2 said.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s a 90 percentile in Slot Shots volume, a 51 percentile last year.<\/p>\n

Part of that is getting lost in the offensive zone when his linemates are on the cycle: Smith is 94 percentile in xG on Cycle Shots, after being a 41 percentile forward last year.<\/p>\n

\u201c[Timing when you show] up in the slot is when you get the best chances,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n

These improvements, coupled with small gains in where Smith was already high-end at \u2014 last year, he was already close to a 90 percentile forward in Passing and Rush Offense \u2014 have led to a dramatically more dangerous attacker.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis skill\u2019s always gonna be there, he\u2019s just getting a little more comfortable,\u201d Celebrini said.<\/p>\n

\u201cLast year, you [could] see the skill he had and the awareness to make plays, but right now, I think he elevated it a little bit more,\u201d Wennberg said. \u201cHis poise with the puck and his confidence with it.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the heart of this is Smith\u2019s unimpeachable hockey IQ, which helps him process the game as quickly as his superstar center and best friend Celebrini.<\/p>\n

\u201cTheir hockey sense is very similar as far as the way they see the ice and the way they see plays develop,\u201d Warsofsky said. \u201cThe biggest thing is they see the ice well, and they can see plays develop before 90 percent of the league.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s about how quick you can read the play, where you can be,\u201d Wennberg said. \u201cThat’s where I think [Smith\u2019s] hockey IQ is just elite.\u201d<\/p>\n

Warsofsky admitted, \u201cYou could go through Mack and Will’s shifts and show them video. And even if it’s a mistake in my eyes, they can tell you what they were thinking and maybe what play they wanted to make, and then you can see it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe’s just more comfortable,\u201d Celebrini said. \u201cWe’re just more comfortable with each other. The more you’re used to someone, the more you can play off them, the quicker decisions you can make.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey complement [each other] really well, just the way they play,\u201d Wennberg said. \u201cIt’s a perfect match, for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

All this leads to a couple key Stathletes numbers: Smith leads all Sharks in Individual Expected Goals Per 60, in All Situations. This tells you that Smith is going to the danger areas.<\/p>\n

And he\u2019s 16th in the NHL with 1.91 High Danger Chances Per 60, which is a combination of high-danger scoring chance shots and assists.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s highest on the Sharks, and just behind great company like Leon Draisaitl, Nathan MacKinnon, Connor McDavid, Nikita Kucherov, and Kirill Kaprizov, to name a handful. Smith is just ahead of fellow young guns Cole Caulfield and Connor Bedard.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s still a lot, of course, to improve in his all-around game.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s a below-average defensive forward, according to Stathletes.<\/p>\n

\u201cHabits off the puck still not there,\u201d Scout No. 1 said.<\/p>\n

He needs to become stronger and quicker, both to evade pressure and improve puck protection. This will also help him become a more reliable puck transporter, from blueline to blueline.<\/p>\n

But Smith is on the cusp of greatness.<\/p>\n

\u201cSecond year is not always easy, a lot more pressure and expectations on you,\u201d Wennberg said. \u201cThe way he’s handling it and how he’s been playing, it’s been going really well.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s gonna fill the net,\u201d Scout No. 2 said. \u201cHe\u2019s kind of a forgotten guy there at times.\u201d<\/p>\n

Download and follow the San Jose Hockey Now podcast<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"CHICAGO \u2014 Will Smith is a much better player than he was in his rookie year. The sophomore…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":272006,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[1035,88,90,89,3578],"class_list":{"0":"post-272005","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-jose","8":"tag-macklin-celebrini","9":"tag-san-jose","10":"tag-san-jose-headlines","11":"tag-san-jose-news","12":"tag-will-smith"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/272005","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=272005"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/272005\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/272006"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=272005"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=272005"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=272005"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}