When NHL play was halted due to the 2004–05 NHL lockout, Williams played overseas in the SM-liiga with Porin Ässät. Returning to the Wings in 2005–06 under new head coach Mike Babcock, Williams broke out with 21 goals and 58 points, frequently playing on a line with Steve Yzerman and Robert Lang. On October 22, 2005, Williams notched his first career hat trick in a 6–0 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets. All three goals came in the first period of that game; it was the first time Red Wings player scored three times in a single period since Darren McCarty's hat trick in the third period of game one against the Colorado Avalanche in the 2002 Western Conference Finals.