sometimes i think about will smith finally proudly claiming is position as winger (in the most smug way possible he could think of) during the bronco adv and how it is something that really made me proud of his journey in the NHL.
He started his first season with a bit of a struggle, unable to convert his efforts into points until he scored his first two goals the same game against the Chicago Blackhawks in San Jose on Oct. 31, 2004 putting an end to his points drought, and for a person that ended his college career with a 71 point making him rank among the best freshman seasons in modern college hockey, and finishing the year as one of the top offensive players in the entire NCAA, wasn't something easy to digest.
So, not only did he have to deal with this little crack in his confidence, he later also had to find a way to adjust to the sharks coaches decision (remember coaches decision, not his) to play him as a winger.
The sharks moved Will to the wing during their game against the Philadelphia Flyers on Nov. 12, 2004 when he played in a Goodrow-Wennberg-W. Smith line combination and as he said:
"It was good trying something new [...] It's obviously different jobs, but besides that, you got to know how to play each position and be ready for it." (The Hockey News)
and if you think it was an easy adjustment you would be wrong, cause even if it's not unusual for former center to shift into a winger position while developing in the NHL, that doesn't mean that is something easy to do. There wasn't a single official āswitch gameā where he suddenly became a full-time winger, it was, in fact, a gradual process that lasted 2-3 weeks where he switched from center to wings and coaches tested him with different line combinations.
Things started to change during mid-Nov. 2024 when the San Jose Sharks experimented with putting Will and Mack together on the same line in practice and power-play situations. The first time they actually played on the same forward line in a game came during late Nov. 2024, specifically in games around Nov. 23ā25, 2024.
And from there? Everything started to fall in place for his game and he finally started to produce a strong offensive stretch of points across those games: NHL PR summarized Smithās month as 3 goals, 6 assists, 9 points in 13 November games.
So we can confidently say that from then his confidence found a new boost and he was able to prove himself as a capable winger concluding the 2024/25 season with 45 points in a total of 74 games played for the San Jose Sharks and constantly growing his production, in fact, he finished the season especially strong, being able to have several multi-point games in April, including a 4-point night (1 goal, 3 assists) against Minnesota on April 10, 2025.
Fast forward, during exit interviews at the end of the 24-25 season, the Sharks GM Mike Grier told reporters that Will would get a shot to move back to center during the next season but during summer something probably change (like probably a certain hockey camp in Halifax) and Will began the season playing primary as a winger, specifically, on Mack's wing.
āItās good to have the versatility to be both. I think this year Iām going to be mainly a wing, but I also worked on draws over the summer a lotā (Shark Hockey Digest)
So, as we can read, he started the new season embracing the role the sharks gave to him (like the smart guy he is cause at this point of the rebuilding you have to keep in mind that misamisa was draft as 2C) but he still seems a little bit conflicted with that role. He played center his whole life and he probably started this season not having wrapped up his mind yet with the idea that he could've been a better asset as a winger that he could ever been as a center.
But the season started (slowly for the sharks, but it started) and the line chemistry between Will and Mack was under everyone eyes to see and the points production they were able to pull is unbelievably good, combining 46 goals where both of them recorded a point on the same scoring play (goal + assist, or both assists).
The 25/26 season proved how good he is as a winger, how he overcame his adjustment period to the role and how he has now made it his own. Cause his playing style, being a high-skill offensive playmaker with elite hockey IQ, strong puckhandling, and his vision and creative passing game, were always compatible with the role of a modern winger, and above all he's strongly compatible (and complementary) with Macklin play style. Together, they simply work.
Even if sometimes he still struggle with consistency he surely gained confidence on his new role, i think now he have totally embraced his position as a winger and he also probably have overcome the fear of "having failed" himself as a center and have made peace with himself and how a good of a player he still is even if he now play a little bit on the right side of the rink.
