No. 1 Will Smith: A Special Talent

For fans who have grown up on a diet of Taylor Doherty, Daniil Tarasov and Matt Nieto as their club’s top prospects, a prospect like Will Smith understandably seems a bit rich to comprehend. Sharks prospects are generally tweeners at their peaks — of all of San Jose’s post-2007 picks, only Tomas Hertl and Timo Meier became genuine stars for the Sharks, and neither of them were all-NHL superstars in the way that Joe Thornton was.

Will Smith is different.

Position: Center
Height: 6-foot-0
Weight: 181 lbs
Age: 18
Date of Birth: March 17, 2005
Draft Year: 2023, 4th overall by the San Jose Sharks
Shoots: Right
2023-24 Team: Boston College

Prospect evaluation is a fool’s errand, and more people are guessing and taking shots in the dark than would admit. There are very few players that stand out as genuine superstars in the run-and-gun nature of junior hockey, and very few that have all-NHL upside so clearly visible from first observation. Virtually every scout who watched Smith, however, was taken by his incredible puck-handling, his superb offensive instincts and his incredible on-ice vision.

Smith was the best player in the USNTDP and the US National U18 Team, wreaking havoc on a line with Ryan Leonard and Gabe Perreault en route to a jaw-dropping 127 points in 60 USNTDP games, with 42 more in the USHL in just 20 games to boot. Perhaps the most shocking thing about his season was that it came from seemingly nowhere — Smith’s age-17 season gave some indications that he was a very talented player, but the stratospheric jump he took in his draft year caught everyone by surprise.

Smith’s rapid ascent saw him skyrocket up the draft boards as a result, and by the time the U18 World Juniors came around, all eyes were on him to see whether the hype would translate to the international stage. He more than met the moment, with an astonishing 20 points in 7 games en route to a title and the MVP award, tying Jack Hughes’ record for the most points ever put up by an American in the U18 tournament.

With a season for the ages under his belt, it was a virtual certainty that Smith would be drafted very early, even in a draft as stacked as the 2023 one. Although pre-draft reports strongly indicated Columbus would be his destination at the #3 spot, Adam Fantilli’s surprising fall meant that Smith slipped to the Sharks, who were more than happy to pick him up.

Perhaps surprisingly, however, Smith’s pick was not met with acclaim — many felt that San Jose had passed up the chance at a generational prospect in Matvei Michkov in exchange for a “simply elite” one in Smith. However, while Michkov’s ability was never in doubt, his desire to ever suit up for the Sharks certainly was. When contextualized against Michkov’s lengthy KHL contract and the uncertainty surrounding the Russian prospect, San Jose’s decision to take Smith becomes much more understandable.

In either case, however, the debate around the draft pick unfairly discredits Smith, who happens to be much more than a consolation prize. A special talent with breathtaking offensive upside, Smith would have gone first or second overall in many weaker drafts — in fact, his draft year statistics measure up quite well against those of superstars like Jack Hughes. Smith will reunite with Perreault and Leonard at Boston College next year, before likely making the jump to San Jose for the 2024-25 season.

What We Like

A smooth skater with near-unmatched maneuverability, Smith is possibly the most talented and fun prospect that the Sharks have ever drafted. If San Jose ever has another 100-point season from a forward anytime soon, there’s a good chance it may come from their 4th overall pick in 2023.

Smith has an incredible offensive profile and has an uncanny ability to find and create space through a combination of incredible hockey IQ and mesmerizing puck skills. His passing is excellent, with a knack for locating open lanes and threading cross-ice passes through them, and his shot also happens to be deceptively quick. Unlike most offensive forwards, however, Smith is no slouch defensively — The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler notes that his steals and stick lifts are surprisingly very good.

Areas of Improvement

Smith is not a weak player by any means, but he will need to add some more muscle to his frame to ensure that he doesn’t get physically outmatched at the NHL level. He also tends to hang on to the puck for a bit too long at times and tries to do a bit too much with it, and while these are fairly normal traits to see in junior hockey, especially among players as talented as Smith, they will likely need to be rectified if he is to fulfill his potential.

The biggest thing the Sharks will need to give Smith, however, is leeway and opportunity. If Smith is thrust into a checking or grinding role to start his NHL career and is not given the freedom to display his immense offensive talents, the Sharks could nerf their center of the future before he even gets started. Thankfully, it seems the Sharks are more than happy to let him develop in college and hone his skills further before making the jump, which indicates that they understand the importance of polishing him into a genuine NHL-ready scorer by the time he does come over.

Highlight

Smith’s WJC performance was the stuff of legend, with the forward putting up a barely-believable 20 points in just 7 games en route to a gold medal and MVP award. In the highlights below, his elite puck handling, immense offensive creativity, and delightful dekes are all on display.