Untitled

[elevatedcupcake]

I think Will Smith hockey and Macklin Celebrini will be a two-way force on ice. They are both skilled playmakers and both good goal scorers. And the best part is, they work in tandem so well. When Will is the playmaker, Mack becomes the shooter and when Mack is the playmaker, Will becomes the shooter. I know they are still at the start of their careers so it’s still too early to predict how things will turn out, but they have the potential to be one of the scariest NHL duos ever.

[elevatedcupcake]

When I close my eyes, I can still picture Macklin at the BU darty doing the world’s worst keg stand and then sitting his ass down on the road and stumbling around drunk asf, changing hats every few hours.

[pvckdrops]

team canada’s teenagers enjoying their day off

[wmhockey]

On Will’s Future with the Sharks: New Draft Picks, Developmental Hurdles, Trade Rumours, and the Willmack Factor

I got a very thoughtful ask about Will’s fate with the Sharks after drafting yet another 2OA: his game, the areas he still needs to develop, the looming Misa/Stenberg situation, trade rumours, and, of course, the whole Willmack of it all. So I thought I’d make a proper long post about it. This is purely my opinion, and I absolutely welcome different perspectives if anyone disagrees. Buckle up, this is gonna be a long and hopefully enjoyable ride.

Does being a 4OA centre moved to wing make Will less valuable than two 2OAs?

Not necessarily. Draft position and player quality aren’t the same thing. Will going 4OA doesn’t mean there were automatically three players better than him; it means three players were picked before him. Teams draft based on need, projection, risk, and what they value at the time. Years later, development can completely flip those rankings. That’s why the Misa situation is complicated, but not catastrophic. The org can believe Misa is the best centre available now and still believe Will is an elite NHL player. And if Will ultimately develops into the better overall player, it would hardly be the first time a 4OA pick outperformed players taken ahead of him.

Was Will being moved to wing actually a demotion, especially after the Misa pick?

I don’t see it that way. I think the Misa pick probably stung, because of course it did. Will was supposed to develop as a centre, and then the Sharks drafted another high-end centre. That had to make the writing on the wall feel a little bolder. But instead of spiraling, Will adapted. He leaned into right wing, and started carving out a different kind of indispensability. That was the smartest thing he could have done. Up until very recently, Will’s been saying he can play wherever the team needs him, but he knows where the opportunity is. He knows Mack wants him there. He knows their chemistry gives him the best chance to produce, stay visible, and remain central to the rebuild. So he finally decided to—very loudly and proudly if I may add—announce himself as a right wing. Clearly he’s embracing his new role.

Is Will only benefiting from Mack, or does Mack benefit from Will too?

That is the part people miss: Will isn’t just being elevated by Mack. He elevates Mack too. Will’s a scorer and creator. His game runs on instinct, timing, and opportunism in the best sense. The quick passes, the no-look plays, the way he finds soft ice — all of that becomes more dangerous because Mack can actually keep up with him. When Will is not there, Mack sometimes looks like he is passing to ghosts. It even took him a minute with Sidney Crosby, which is insane because he’s literally Captain Canada and arguably the face of hockey itself. But Mack’s so used to Will being in those exact spaces at those exact moments that even elite chemistry elsewhere does not look quite as automatic.

Would Mack really choose winning over Will?

This is where I strongly disagree with the idea that Mack would simply choose winning over Will. Yes, Mack cares about winning more than almost anything. That is his life’s purpose, his operating system. But the part people keep missing is that Mack does not seem to experience Will as separate from winning. He experiences Will as part of the answer. A lot of people frame it as a clean choice: personal attachment on one side, competitive success on the other. But that only works if Mack draws a hard line between the two, and from everything we have seen, he doesn’t. The relationship seems more integrated than that. Elite players are always looking for someone who sees the game the same way they do, someone who instinctively understands the timing, the risks, and the possibilities other people miss. Those partnerships are not obstacles to success. They become the foundation of it.

How do we know Mack sees Will as necessary?

I think there is a real argument that Mack has repeatedly chosen Will over every other version of winning available to him: over his own goals, over the easy play, over the play that would make the bench happy, and over the play that would make every hockey bro screaming about “the right hockey decision” happy.

Because when Mack looks at the ice, he does not seem to see a choice between Will and winning. He sees Will as the thing that makes winning possible. Will is hockey to him, in a literal, practical, visceral sense. He is woven into the way Mack understands the game, imagines success, and wants hockey to feel. And this translates off the ice too. Mack has stood in front of reporters for the nth time and talked about how special Will is, how smart he is, and how he just needs guys who can play with him. Do you know how crazy that is to say about your own teammates? That is not how you talk about just some guy.

Necessary is really the word here. Mack does not talk about Will like an option. He talks about him like a requirement, like something is missing from the equation when Will is not there. And for someone as singularly obsessed with winning as Mack is, that says everything. If winning were truly the only thing that mattered, then anyone could fill the role as long as the results came. But Mack keeps returning to Will specifically. Keeps looking for him. Keeps trusting him. Keeps building him up. Keeps insisting, over and over again, that people understand what he sees.

That’s because when Mack chooses Will, he chooses hockey.

Why does Mack’s belief in Will matter so much?

I think it matters to Will more than people realize. Will is proud, stubborn, and competitive in that “held his breath until he passed out because he refused to lose and had his family pelt him with balls to keep his reflexes sharp” kind of way. He’a not naturally built to be anyone’s sidekick. He wants to be the best, and if he cannot be the best, he at least needs to know he is seen as extraordinary by the one person whose opinion seems to matter most.

That is why Mack’s belief in him is so important. Mack never made Will feel small. He fell for Will’s hockey first. Before they were friends, before they were teammates, before whatever the hell this became, Mack already saw the world in him. He respected him. He hated him a little bit because of how good he thought he was. He put him on that pedestal and, frankly, has shown very little interest in letting him climb down.

So Will can be second to Mack without it turning poisonous. He can play on his wing without feeling like he has been diminished. He can love Mack’s greatness without needing to compete with it every second, because Mack has never treated him like less than an equal. Mack looks at Will like the ice is crooked, the refs are bribed, the coach is blind, and the whole world is wrong before Will Smith could ever just be having a bad game. That kind of blind devotion is insane. But it is also exactly why Will can breathe there.

So where does Stenberg actually fit into all of this?

The question isn’t “can Will beat Misa or Stenberg at their jobs?” The question is “can anyone else do Will’s job on Mack’s line?” Right now, I don’t think the answer is yes. Will has been Mack’s most stable, natural linemate. Their production together speaks for itself, but so does the eye test. The organization markets them together, talks about them together, and treats them as the emotional centre of the rebuild. Will isn’t some random chess piece. He’s the second face of the franchise. Furthermore, Stenberg shoots left. Will shoots right. If anything, Stenberg complicates the left-wing picture more than Will’s spot. The more obvious pressure point is Cherny, or the structure of Misa’s line. Stenberg could help deepen the lineup, give Misa a more dynamic winger, and reduce the burden on Mack’s line. That’s not the same thing as replacing Will. Line blending will happen. Stenberg might get looks with Mack. That’s normal. But Will being permanently displaced from Mack’s wing? I don’t buy it.

Does Will still have things to prove?

Absolutely. He needs to get stronger, be harder on the boards, become more reliable away from the puck, and trust his shoulder enough to go into dirty areas without hesitation. But he knows that. He is not stupid. If anything, this new wave of competition probably lights a fire under him. He is too proud, too calculating, and too aware of the stakes with the playoffs push next season not to come back sharper.

Would the Sharks seriously trade Will?

No chance. Grier clearly values Will. The team clearly values Will. The Sharks have cap space, organizational investment, marketing incentive, on-ice chemistry, and their franchise player’s very obvious attachment all pointing in the same direction. And Mack would absolutely raise hell if the organization seriously considered moving him.

So what is the bottom line?

Unless the sky turns purple and Will wakes up having forgotten how to play hockey, I think he is fine. He and Mack are on solid ground. Stenberg is not replacing him. The Sharks are not trading him. And if Will uses this offseason the way I think he will — bulking up, rehabbing the shoulder, getting nastier on the boards, and coming back playoff-ready — then the noise is going to look very silly very quickly.

[dawg4aday]

the grillmack beginnings <3

[wmhockey]

i have been very invested on trying to figure out where mack’s canada stick came from as a kinda gear nerd so this is an oddly detailed research: the stick design is a ccm vizion 2 limited canada edition presumably for olympics promo as this new version of the vizion released at the beginning of this year.

however, mack doesn’t use the vizion 2, he still uses the og vizion. this stick was most likely sent to mack for the olympics from cmm, made to his usual stick specifications but just skinned with the updated graphic design. stick manufacturers have done this for the big international events like 4 nations (funnily ccm sent team canada all their custom canada edition sticks and none of the ccm players used them then as well lol). mack did use his usual vizion stick as well as a team canada vizion stick at 2025 worlds but he didn’t switch it up at the olympics this year (also 71 was used on mack’s stick at the olympics even though he was using 17 as his number)0

soooo in conclusion, will does have a very special limited edition custom team canada olympics mack stick !

Your brain, I’d like to hold it tenderly in my hands and then smooch it, platonically of course 🧠

Thank you for this scholarly research. You shall be published to the journal of Wmhockey, expeditiously.

[somethingsomething25]

It just amazes me how Grace always - unintentionally? - drops some new willmack crumbs that just adds craziness to their lore. Because WHAT DO YOU MEAN that Will stars and stripes Smith has Mack’s CANADA stick on display in his house.

I’m unwell

[aerinnaaz]

so have you guys ever noticed will’s hand on mack’s chin in this video or am i hallucinating😁

[eevieurs]

and it's actually serious as fuck to me when you think about it because famously america down ntdp survivor william smith not reposting anything about the literal olympics gold and mack's whole "i just.. said... he just asked me how i was doing" bomb during his post olympics interview and then add in the stick and i might as well hang myself in the public town square and don't. even. let yourself think about the "you need to be proud."

is it casual if i'm your boy best friend and i keep reminders of all of your achievements for you because i'm so proud of you and how much you've accomplished through all of the adversity you face and would it be fine if you gave me one of your olympics sticks so i could display it in my house and remember every time i look at it that even playing on the world's largest stage wasn't enough for you to forget me or want anybody but me with you forever.

and additionally of course i want your stick in the front and center of my collection to draw the eyes of everyone who walks into my house because i would never try to hide what you achieve. and forget all the people who ask you if i'm jealous of all that you have because why would i be jealous when someone who's that much of a star is devoting every inch of himself to me.

would that be okay. if i integrate you into every piece of my life, even my childhood home. says will smith, the famous mosaic of everyone who has ever loved him.

[boysharkmack]

something so fond about will dodging macks stick without even looking at him like hes so predictable and only will can #handleallthat #myproblem #myannoyingassbf

[ruthspringermadeit]

—— Enter Macklin Celebrini, 19

Shoulders so heavy, the weight of the world so heavy, yet there Willy is, there to catch him when he falls, there to give him a reason to get back up again, there to tell him to celebrate his accomplishments and goals being met, there to tell him that it'll be okay, there to tell him not to lose sleep over it, there to tell him to be proud in moments of victory, there to tell him to take a break and slow down, there to tell him to lean on him when it gets hard to breathe.

And you know what Mack does to reciprocate it all? Devotes every fiber of his being to Will. When Will gets benched, Mack is right there to pick up the pieces and take him to a basketball game to get his mind off things. He’s feeling down because he messed up a play? Mack will be right there for him to lean on when he comes out of hiding all the way on the other side of the bench. To tell him tenderly, “it was a good try though.” Will is feeling overwhelmed and like he is not enough to play on Mack's line——enter, "he's gonna come back and see that I'm not McDavid." -Will Smith? Mack doesn't even say anything; he just shows him that he is enough by passing to him every chance he gets and giving up his own chances, regardless of how many times Will misses the shot and out of frustration, punishes himself for it by isolating himself from all else with his head hung low. Will gets shade thrown from the media; Mack responds by reminding everyone that he is a fourth overall pick and that he is an elite player you should expect greatness from.

In other words, take his weakness for greatness because, regardless of if he is not looking good one night, he is always trying his best to make it easier for his teammates. Him being overshadowed is out of the question for Mack; he will do everything in his power to make sure that never sees the light of day. They will always be thought of together in anyone's mind if he has a say in it. They really are always right there for each other, whether they realize it or not. It 's really the little things that make you want to keep someone in your life for all eternity. That is so good for them and whatever they consider themselves to be.

[elevatedcupcake]

Felt these words pierce right through my heart ♥️

[tealcupid]

i drive myself crazy sometimes thinking about how everyone around will and mack are aware of how entangled with each other they are. i think about their teammates saying lowkey insane things, like they need each other; they are on a different level, they are attached at the hip; don't they get sick of each other?; they are at each other's houses all the time and when they aren't together they are facetiming.

how about the girlfriends and wives of their teammates getting shocked that they are really all over each other all the fucking time? do you get how fucking insane it is that people have heard that they are super close but then you see it in person and it's, like. on a whole different level of what you imagined?

of course we can attribute the fact that they have grown closer to each other due to age and similar experiences (both are competitive, both are very ambitious, both take hockey extremely seriously, both were always seen as very valuable players to their teams etc.), but what can explain the fact that they seemingly can't stay apart?

you'd expect that such young and attractive men would be out there living their best lives, partying and meeting different girls every other night after long days of seeing each other's faces during practice and hockey games. but instead, what you get from willmack is that they literally want to spend every single minute together. they aren't saying goodbye to each other after games. they are going out to grab some dinner together, and then either mack goes to the marleau's place or will goes to jumbo's.

well, how about some privacy when they are playing outside of san jose? not happening either. they are staying in the same hotel room.

and this whole thing of immersing each other in their respective inner circles...? mack going to boston and will who is going to vancouver after mack is done with worlds? are they ever really apart? are they ever not trying to include each other in every little thing that they do?

and it's so different, the way they treat each other. will is so patient with mack, while mack speaks to will in such a soft tone. they are like magnets with their need to be around each other. it's unusual how will and mack are somehow always close during the games. you don't really see mack or will plastered to anyone else's back. you also don't see mack calling anyone else to sit next to him on the bench. there's also no real reason not to sit on an empty space on the bench instead of forcing your teammates to make space for you just so you can sit next to your best friend. but well. that's what mack does. has done it more than once.

their whole dynamic is such an interesting thing to observe. there's so much playfulness and partnership, but also devotion and honesty. they really balance each other. will grounds mack. mack encourages will. so beautiful.

i really don't care what type of relationship they have, i just hope they get to have each other forever, because, like toff said, they need each other. and they need each other in ways maybe we, as mere spectators, will possibly never even get close to understanding. god knows what losing each other could do to them. i don't think they would ever recover from that. i truly don't.

[pewpaws]

OH THE INSTANT SMILE AND FOLLOW 😭 WRAP IT UP

[orangeflavouredchips]

will to mack goals: 2026-01-23 vs NYR ↑ / 2026-01-27 @ VAN ↓

[wmhockey]

What are your top 5 WM plays (even if it didn't lead to a score)? Not specific date range :)

This is so hard because I have a few favourite goals and three overall favourite games. The Penguins game is in a league of its own, so I’m not even going to mention it here, otherwise we’ll be here all day.

My Favourite Willmack Games

March 30 — Sharks vs. Blues

This game is my all-time favourite Sharks game, bar none. Slap it on my forehead. Play it at my wedding. Play it at my funeral. Willmack were giving off vibes that remain, to this day, indescribable.

Do me a favour and watch this entire compilation. Run, do not walk.

This game gave us Mack eye-fucking Will across the cheer huddle. It gave us fandom trying to hire professional lip readers for their monumental bench conversations. It gave us “you need to be proud,” “stop looking at me like that,” “thank you,” and levels of yearning previously unknown to mankind. It gave us annoyed!Will when Toff dared to interrupt their dick-to-ass orbiting. Oh, and did I mention Rick was there? All of this, naturally, performed in the gorgeous Cali Fin jerseys. Seriously, find somewhere to watch this game if you haven’t. I promote it for free.99.

April 6 — Sharks vs. Blackhawks

This is another game that is very near and dear to my heart. First, we had Willmack flying saucers during warmups to copy Eky’s famous goal. Then came the national anthem shenanigans, which later led to Mack posting that famous picture of himself looking at Will to “Loving Life Again” on Insta. As if that were not enough, Colleen, Grace, and Rick were in attendance, sitting together, looking proud of their prodigies. Then, on the actual hockey side of things, Will recorded his 100th career point because, of course, this game also had to be historically significant. Mack was then caught looking turned on beyond belief by their goal, and later gave us clingy!Mack tripping Will for not paying enough attention to him. We got a full Willmack anthology in this one, folks. 

April 16 — Sharks vs. Jets

Their last game of the season: the Sharks winning 6–1, the entire young core scoring, Mack breaking the franchise record—surpassing Jumbo for most points in a single season, and Will collecting Mack’s game-winning puck. Then Drandy interviewed Will and called Mack his “partner”, the Sharks sprayed water all over Mack, and Sharks media released that goofy compilation of team shenanigans as the credits rolled.

My Favourite Willmack Goals

There are so many, but these are the ones that immediately come to mind: First, the first win of the season, which was narrative cinema. And then, of course, we have the spin celly goal, which frankly deserves its own thesis chapter, along with the two beautiful no-look passes and this sexy crease goal. Sick and twisted levels of chemistry apparent in all of them. 

[keelpay]

willmack bench moments from march 30th at half-speed (set to kelly clarkson's cover of all the things she said)

~ do not repost ~

[jellyolks]

you got a fetish for my love.

(creds): eversincefaith on tt