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Sharks Rookie Won't Play Against Panthers With Injury

max miller
·1 min read

San Jose Sharks rookie Will Smith won't play against the Florida Panthers tonight with an upper-body injury.

Ethan Cardwell will re-enter the lineup after being a healthy scratch the previous two games.

Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky didn't reveal who Cardwell would be playing with. However, Cardwell skated in Smith's spot with Mikael Granlund and Klim Kostin.

"Just understand the game. The speed of the game, the situation of the game that's happening. The details that you need to play with, shift in and shift out as a young player that's learning," Warsofsky said about Cardwell. "It's not going to happen overnight. It's not going to happen in one game. Can he play towards his identity? Can he pick things up quickly? If he makes a mistake, can he correct it next shift? And sometimes they can, but he's obviously a guy that can skate. He can get on the forecheck. He's done some really good things going back to training camp to give him this opportunity, and he needs to continue to grow his game."

Warsofsky said a hit during the game against the Tampa Bay Lightning injured Smith, but he is still not exactly sure when it occurred. The head coach doesn't expect the rookie to be out long and rules him day-to-day.

Smith has five goals and six assists in 24 games this season.

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