Will Smith is back at practice.
For the first time since his Dec. 13 lower-body injury, Smith joined San Jose Sharks practice, wearing an orange no-contact jersey.
The news got better for Smith after practice: San Jose Sharks head coach Ryan Warsofsky said that Smith, considered week-to-week, is ahead of Philipp Kurashev, who also suffered a lower-body injury on Dec. 13.
Both should be back before the Olympics, but Warsofsky said that Smith should be 5-6 days ahead of his fellow San Jose Sharks winger.
Meanwhile, the news isn’t as good for Ty Dellandrea, who suffered a lower-body injury on Jan. 6. Warsofsky said that Dellandrea will get re-evaluated right before the Olympics, meaning the third-line center is out until at least Feb. 4, the San Jose Sharks’ last game before the break.
On defense, John Klingberg, out since Dec. 31 with a lower-body injury, practiced. Warsofsky says he won’t be an option for Saturday against the Dallas Stars, but optimism seems high that he will be back shortly thereafter.
Meanwhile, Vincent Desharnais (upper-body) and Shakir Mukhamadullin (upper-body) skated together before practice. They don’t appear to be immediate options to return this weekend, though neither are suffering, at this point, long-term injuries.