""He's had some good days. Had some days where he's kind of just blended in," Warsofsky said of Smith. "My conversation with him today was that it's time to start taking it to another level. He knows that. We've pushed him, we've challenged him, we're going to continue to do that. "We're going to try to make him the best player possible. That's our job.""
"Smith was on the left wing, an unusual spot for him, for Wednesday's preseason home game against the Anaheim Ducks, and had an assist on William Eklund's third-period power-play goal in what became a 5-2 Sharks loss. Smith was a -3 in 16:45 in ice time as he skated on a line with Philipp Kurashev and Cam Lund. "He had some moments," Warsofsky said Wednesday night of Smith's game. "Still some room to get better and improve, but had some moments where he did some things that we talked about.""
Will Smith has shown intermittent strong play during training camp, mirroring past patterns of slow starts before breaking out. Coach Ryan Warsofsky met with Smith and challenged him to raise his level as the regular season approaches. Smith played an unusual left-wing role in a preseason game, recorded an assist on William Eklund's third-period power-play goal, and logged 16:45 with a minus-3 rating while centering a line with Philipp Kurashev and Cam Lund. Warsofsky acknowledged positive moments but emphasized room for improvement. Macklin Celebrini's recovery from an undisclosed illness could affect line combinations when he returns.
Read at The Mercury News
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