SAN JOSE – San Jose Sharks center Will Smith lost just six of 41 games with Boston College last season. Fellow freshman Macklin Celebrini went just 10 of 40 against Boston University.
Both could suffer more losses in a number of weeks this season than they did in all of last 12 months.
That's the physical and mental challenge that top draft picks like Smith and Celebrini may face this 12 months as they transition from wildly successful college programs to a Sharks team that, in turn, is anticipated to be an entire finally ends up at or near the underside of the NHL standings.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been on a bad team,” Smith said, not referring to the Sharks. “At the start of this year we’re trying to win and I’m trying to carry that winning mentality with me wherever I go.”
With the additions – and subtractions – they made this summer, the Sharks expect to enhance on their NHL-worst record of 19-54-9 last season. Still, not only are the Sharks expected to miss the playoffs for the sixth straight 12 months, but additionally they appear to have a great probability of winning the NHL Draft Lottery for the second straight 12 months.
For example, online sports betting sites project the Sharks to complete with 64 or 65 points, the bottom projected total of any NHL team.
That would mean a number of losses and greater than a number of losing streaks. Last season, the Sharks suffered 4 losses in at the least nine games.
With a strengthened roster, the Sharks will likely have the ability to avoid an identical disgrace this season. But how apprehensive should they be that each one these losses, in the event that they actually occur, may have a cumulative effect on the boldness of a newbie, especially one who has never lost a lot before?
“Winning is really hard, but how we deal with these losses could be even harder,” Sharks center Nico Sturm said. “When you have a great game, the team wins, you score, you feel good and it's very easy to get up and get on the ice the next day.
“But when you take a hit – I think we had 10 games in a row that we lost twice last year – it's hard to get up the next day, put your head down and go back to work.”
Like most rookies, Celebrini and Smith know they will face some adversity in their first professional seasons. If it happens as a team, they'll likely look to the veterans to see how they react.
“I think as older guys it’s up to us how we conduct ourselves,” Sharks defenseman Matt Benning said. “Because what do you do as a younger man who has never been here before? It's just human nature. You look at how the guys who have been there for a while deal with it.
“So I think the older guys, or the guys that have been in the league for a few years, are going to have a big responsibility on us to behave in a way that helps the younger guys get through whatever have to get through them.” .”
Sharks defenseman Henry Thrun experienced it firsthand when he moved from college to the NHL. In his final season at Harvard, 2022-23, before joining the Sharks and signing with the team, the Crimson went 24-8-2.
Remarkably, Thrun still hasn't won 24 games with the Sharks. They had a 2-5-1 record following his arrival in 2023 and were 9-36-6 with him within the lineup last season.
“It’s honestly the hardest thing to get used to, both from a team standpoint and a personal standpoint,” Thrun said. “In college, (Smith’s) team was obviously pretty good last year and from an individual standpoint he had a good year. Coming out of college I was in a similar boat where I had a good career and had a good team and you change things.
“There’s a lot of learning in the NHL. Unfortunately, you learn from your mistakes, and that's hard. You have to continue to believe in yourself and persevere. That’s how you stay optimistic: the self-belief and unwavering belief that you are there for a reason.”
The Sharks needed to present Celebrini and Smith the most effective possible probability to succeed this 12 months and brought in a handful of experienced players to supply insulation.
In Thursday's season opener against the St. Louis Blues, it looks like Celebrini will probably be on a line with Tyler Toffoli and William Eklund and Smith will play with Mikael Granlund and Fabian Zetterlund.
Smith and Celebrini got a taste of the NHL pace within the preseason, but the primary NHL regular season game will probably be an enormous eye-opener.
“The speed of the game, the tempo at which it is played, the details that it plays and its grown men,” Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said of the most important difference between college hockey and the NHL. “In college, you might be up against a 23-year-old. Here you could compete against a 32-year-old who is 1.90 meters tall and weighs 100 kilograms in front of the net.
“But the biggest thing from my point of view is the speed of the game. When we talked about being quick against the full Vegas team (at Saturday's preseason game), it wasn't clear what was going to happen on Thursday night. And we have to be mentally prepared for that.”
That's what Smith is attempting to do.
“It’s the best league in the world and every night is going to be a fight,” Smith said. “We go in every night trying to win. There will be ups and downs, so stay tough and try to get through them.”
Originally published:
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