Draft profile: Smith's offensive skill could be hard to pass up

The 2023 NHL Draft kicks off Wednesday, with the Blue Jackets holding the No. 3 overall pick in what many experts agree is a high-end draft.

Highly sought-after wunderkind Connor Bedard is likely headed to Chicago with the No. 1 choice, but the Blue Jackets will still be able to a player with high-end skill in the draft. Among the potential choices are big, steady Swedish center Leo Carlsson, electrically skilled American center Will Smith, physical and talented Canadian center Adam Fantilli, and the wild card, offensively gifted Russian winger Matvei Michkov.

MORE: Draft consensus rankings | CBJ draft hub | RSVP for Wednesday's draft party

With that in mind, we're breaking down those four players the rest of this week, continuing today with Smith. One of the most productive players in U.S. National Team Development Program history, Smith could be the next big American star in the NHL thanks to offensive talent that is off the charts.

We'll list Smith's bio info, his accomplishments in his career to this point, share a couple quotes from the player himself at the NHL Scouting Combine and conclude with expert opinions on the standout.

Will Smith: The Vitals

Position: Center

Age:18 (Born March 17, 2005)

Height/Weight:5-11¾, 171

Hometown: Lexington, Mass.

The Accomplishments

• Ranked the No. 3 North American skater available by NHL Central Scouting after posting a 51-76-127 line in 60 games with the U.S. National Team Development Program.
• Is second in USNTDP history for points in a single season behind classmate Gabe Perrault, with both breaking a record previously held by Auston Matthews.
• Notched 42 of those points (15-27-42) in 20 games against USHL competition.
• Produced a 9-11-20 line in seven games and was named tournament MVP while leading the United States to gold at the IIHF World U-18 Championship.
• Tied Jack Hughes' American record with 20 points at a single IIHF U-18 worlds tournament and finished one behind Nikita Kucherov's all-time mark of 21 points set in 2011.
• Produced a career 82-109-191 line in 123 games with the NTDP, second most points ever behind Hughes (228).
• Scored 24 points (11-13-24) in 11 career U-18 World Championship games, tied with Cole Caufield for third most in Team USA history behind just Hughes and Phil Kessel.

Get To Know Will

Dylan Tyrer chats with Will Smith

The Experts Say

CBJ radio host Dylan Tyrer has spoken to a number of scouts and draft experts leading into the draft on the Pipeline Podcast presented by Ruoff. Here's what they had to say about Smith.

Scott Wheeler, The Athletic:"This is not a knock on Matvei Michkov or Connor Bedard, but he's the most gifted player in terms of breaking down opponents one-on-one with the puck on his stick in this draft. Probably a top-three set of hands -- I would put Gabe Perreault and Connor Bedard in there as well, but there's a strong case to be made he's got the best hands in the draft. That in concert with how quickly he plays, his ability to do it at speed and his ability to process and problem solve out there offensively, it's a pretty tantalizing option for (the Blue Jackets), especially because he plays down the middle. … I think he's maybe not going to be the most well-rounded player in this draft long-term, but I think Will Smith has an opportunity to be one of the most productive in terms of a point-producing perspective in this draft after a Connor Bedard. There just aren't many players I've seen come through the draft who can do what he can do with the puck on his stick."

Chris Peters, FloHockey: "The thing about Will Smith is he's an incredibly dynamic talent. He does so many things with the puck. He's the play-driving center for the No. 1 line (with the USNTDP), and every guy on that line is having essentially a record season. ... He has maybe the best hands in the draft in terms of his ability to make guys miss one-on-one. Really outstanding vision. I think that he's gotten stronger this year. His skating has improved, which was a knock on him before. And also his strength, which still needs to get better, has gotten better this year. There's a lot to like about Will Smith. … I think he plays a lot like Trevor Zegras. I think there's a lot of flash and dash. I think Troy Terry might be a little bit better of a comp just because of Troy's goal-scoring ability, because Will has really added that as more of an element."

Adam Kimelman, NHL.com: "Will Smith has that get you out of your seat skill set, that explosive offensive ability with the skating and the ability to create something out of nothing with the hands and his skating. He projects to be a really top-end offensive player whenever he is ready to move to the next level. Just watch him at the World Under-18s. (He had) 20 points in seven games, tied Jack Hughes' U.S. record. He's a special player who just has gotten better as the season's gone on."

Dan Marr, NHL Central Scouting director:"He's just an all-around highly skilled talent. At the beginning you sit there and say, 'Is this guy the real deal?' Every game you go to, he proves it, he shows it. He can make magic out there on the ice. It looks like an innocent enough play, and then all of a sudden he makes a move or he makes a pass or he pulls away and there's a scoring opportunity. He's an offensive machine, but he's also a responsible player. Without the puck he's responsible to do his job on the backcheck, to do his job with coverages. He just reads the play so quickly and so offensively. He reminds me a little bit, he has that swagger like Trevor Zegras has. That's going to bode well for him when he gets into a position where he's going to compete for a job in an NHL lineup. You need to have that confidence that goes along with it, and Will Smith has that."