NHL Draft: Zach Benson vs. Nate Danielson

The two WHL stars comment on each other's strengths as they prepare to see who goes higher in Nashville.

NASHVILLE - The No. 1 prospect in the 2023 NHL draft is Connor Bedard - no shock there. But Bedard headlines one of the strongest WHL crops in years and there's a nice little debate to be had on who will be the next 'Dub' star picked after Bedard. Moose Jaw's Brayden Yager is intriguing and Kelowna's Andrew Cristall is an offensive sorcerer, but the two names being bandied about the most right now are Brandon's Nate Danielson and Zach Benson, whose Winnipeg franchise is in the middle of moving to Wenatchee in Washington state.

Brandon and Winnipeg were the only two WHL teams in the province of Manitoba and now it'll be down to one, something Danielson isn't too keen on - even though Benson's squad dominated his Wheat Kings this past season.

"You want to win every game, but it kinda sucks not to have that rivalry anymore," Danielson said. "It was the Battle of Manitoba."

Danielson is interesting because he's a lot more advanced defensively than most players his age. He's a 200-foot center who put up 78 points on a weaker team that finished with a losing record. Scouts estimated that he would have produced even more with a stronger surrounding cast, so if you believe in the offense, he's a player with a lot of upside despite being one of the oldest first-time eligible players in the draft (his September 27th birthday means he missed last year's draft by less than two weeks).

"I think we played them 10 times this year so I learned a lot about him," Benson said. "He's super-skilled, super-good in the defensive zone and I'd say that's where he excels the most: in his own end."

At 6-foot-2 and 185 pounds, Danielson has great NHL size for a burgeoning center. Benson, at 5-foot-9 and 163 pounds, comes in at the opposite end of the spectrum, but the left winger also scored more points than any 2005-born player besides Bedard in major junior, with 98.

"'Benny' is a great player," Danielson said. "Very elusive and skilled; he was tough to play against this year."

Size has typically been a reason for players to drop on draft day, whether it was justified or not (ask Montreal fans how they feel about getting Cole Caufield 15th overall in 2019). With Benson, scouts at least acknowledge that he's willing to go into the hard areas and compete for pucks in order to create scoring chances. Tampa Bay's Brayden Point is the NHLer he likes to reference the most.

And though Benson played on a loaded Winnipeg Ice team this year, scouts also noted that he often drove play while skating with top NHL prospects such as Buffalo's Matt Savoie and Arizona's Conor Geekie. Depending on who all comes back in the fall, the team could be very good again - but they'll do so in Wenatchee instead of Winnipeg. The move, just recently announced, is still a work in progress.

"I don't know a ton," Benson said. "I've talked to our new GM, Bliss Littler - he's actually here in Nashville - so I'll get to meet him and learn more about Wenatchee."

Wherever he plays, Benson is sure to continue piling up the points. So who goes first? Danielson, with the NHL frame and defensive acumen, or Benson, the smaller but dynamic player? That will be one of the numerous subplots to the first round of action in Nashville. But no matter who goes higher, both are going to be players to watch in the very near future - potentially as teammates on Canada's world junior team. Brandon and Winnipeg together again? It would be a Manitoba miracle.