Scouts & Warsofsky Explain Benching Smith, What Other Sharks Did Wrong on Line Change (+)

Why did Ryan Warsofsky bench Will Smith on the late 6-on-5 in the San Jose Sharks’ 4-1 loss to the Calgary Flames?

“Teaching moment for sure,” Scout #1 opined.

Warsofsky didn’t offer much explanation after the game but went into more detail on Friday.

It wasn’t just about the Smith line change that played a part in the Connor Zary goal that made it 2-1.

Connor Zary
2-1 #Flames pic.twitter.com/PKnOr8zTWc

— JD Young (@MyFryHole) February 27, 2026

Two NHL scouts and hockey tactics guru Jack Han shared their thoughts about the sequence.