This is a positive Will Smith injury update?
San Jose Hockey Now spotted Smith without a sling in the San Jose Sharks locker room this afternoon.
Smith had been seen with a sling for his right arm on Monday in Los Gatos and on Tuesday after the Sharks’ 6-3 win over the Calgary Flames.
Will Smith and Philipp Kurashev were injured during San Jose’s 6-5 OT victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday. Both were placed on IR, meaning they’ll miss a minimum of one week, the entirety of the Sharks’ current homestand. They’re next eligible to play on Dec. 23 at the Vegas Golden Knights.
San Jose Sharks head coach Ryan Warsofsky, when asked to rule out surgery for Smith on back-to-back days earlier this week, has repeated, “We’re gonna re-assess it on Monday.”
Hopefully, Smith spending some time out of his sling is a good sign that he’s avoided worst-case scenarios for his upper-body injury. Kurashev has already been labeled week-to-week, whereas Smith is still awaiting another evaluation.
Also worth noting, Smith’s stall was moved in the San Jose Sharks locker room. Winger Igor Chernyshov, who was called up in part to take Smith’s place, is occupying what was Smith’s stall next to William Eklund and Tyler Toffoli. Meanwhile, Smith is now next to Yaroslav Askarov, where Chernyshov was originally.
Also, Kurashev doesn’t have a stall in the room right now.
Reading the tea leaves?
Also, Smith’s stall was moved next to Askarov’s. Chernyshov was there previously.
Maybe more noteworthy to me, Smith still has a stall in Sharks locker room, while Kurashev does not. That COULD be a signal of a longer-term injury vs. a shorter-term one. The locker room has…
— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) December 18, 2025
