"It's Just a Matter of Time for Him": Danielson Proving NHL Question is about When, Not If
Nate Danielson's performance in training camp has shown why teammates and coaches feel he's going to be a good NHL player. But getting an actual roster spot is a little more complicated.
Nate Danielson didn’t know how to feel when he heard Patrick Kane compare him to Connor Bedard.
On one hand, the Red Wings' ninth overall pick in 2023 was excited to hear praise from a player he idolized growing up — “I've watched his shootouts thousands of times,” he said of Kane. But Danielson also doesn’t want to liken himself too much to Bedard, a close friend and fellow WHL product. While he is flattered by Kane’s comparison, Danielson said he models his game more off of Dylan Larkin.
“I think I play similar to him as just a complete two way centerman,” Danielson said Thursday. “... And I think his compete, too. He’s someone who every practice — he doesn't care what it is — if it’s in a game or at the end of practice, he wants to win, and so he's someone I definitely look up to and watch.”
The specific comparisons don't matter so much as the principle: before his first pro season, NHL stars are paying attention to Danielson’s game. Specifically, Patrick Kane is doing so.
For good reason, too. Danielson has been impressive for the Red Wings these past few weeks, from the prospect games against Dallas, to training camp in Traverse City and now in preseason practices. It's a positive way to build on the high expectations he came in with, after impressing last training camp as an 18-year-old and following that up with a solid season in the WHL. His success the past few weeks has been a preview for what Danielson could bring to the Detroit Red Wings someday — a future that appears to be quite bright. How soon? That's a different story.
If we're going off Danielson's own performances, it appears NHL readiness is quite soon. The bright lights of playing with childhood heroes hasn’t caught Danielson off guard. In fact, he’s looked at home alongside them.
With his hard-working identity shown all 200 feet of the rink, Danielson has done more than just show his teammates that he’s a dynamic young prospect. He’s also earned their respect.
“Even from last year, he’s just a really smart player,” alternate captain Andrew Copp said Thursday. “A guy that knows where to be, knows how to move the puck. I think you can tell that he's put on a little bit of muscle, a little bit of mass since the last time I saw him this time last year. I'm looking forward to seeing how he plays in the preseason games, because you definitely see it's there. It's just a matter of time for him.”
No single thing makes Danielson's game ready for the NHL. Rather, he puts so many details together. He possesses the hockey sense of a wise vet, using that to play exceptional defense and create scoring chances for his team. He also bulked up a bit this offseason, adding about four pounds while already understanding how to maximize his leverage to make use of it. Most of all, Danielson has a “B” game — the good habits players use to consistently make winning plays — that few players his age possess. And that’s where the NHL-ready separate themselves from the NHL-hopeful.
“I really think a two-way game where you're playing the right way all the time, you can make an impact in winning shifts,” Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde said Wednesday. “To me, that's when the player is ready.”
Thursday, Lalonde shared even more praise for Danielson, hedging that he's still improving some areas of his game. “His hockey sense, his feel for the game, puck support, game management — really nice player,” Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde praised Thursday. “I think (he’s) still understanding some things in the game, he seems to have a little more puck play issues in camp this year than he did last year, and I just think that's part of the natural development. But obviously there's a lot of upside.”
Lalonde is quick to point out that Danielson is the kind of player who heats up as a camp progresses, especially once he gets into games. “It doesn't surprise me, the way he thinks the game,” Lalonde said to explain the phenomenon. And in Detroit’s seven remaining games this preseason, Danielson will get plenty of opportunities to show his game at full temperature, which will give a much better glimpse into what he’ll be bringing to the NHL someday soon.
But even if he plays exceedingly well, even if he plays like an NHLer should, getting on the roster isn't so simple for Danielson. He has yet to play a professional season, and the Yzerman era Red Wings aren’t typical to rush a prospect without a sprinkle of AHL seasoning. And even if they did want to bring Danielson up, there really isn’t a spot for him given that there is only going to be space for 12 forwards on the roster as it currently stands. And then if he were to even make the roster, there’s the question of where he fits in.
“If he can make the Detroit Red Wings, OK, where's he playing and what's his role going to be?” general manager Steve Yzerman said Sept. 17. “Versus, if it’s a minor role, a bit part role, and he's not playing regularly — and this goes for any of our young guys — then they're better off at least as a first year pro, playing a lot in the American Hockey League. So we'll just let it play out.”
If that prognostication was more a reflection of the landscape than Danielson himself, then it probably hasn’t changed too much. Grand Rapids appears to be the most likely destination for Danielson, because there just isn’t a clear spot for him on the roster even if he did go out and claim it.
In a way, the Danielson dilemma shows how much Detroit has grown as an organization. The past when rookies like Moritz Seider and Lucas Raymond could easily crack a roster out of training camp are gone, with bona fide NHLers filling every roster spot. It’s harder for young prodigies to get to the big club now, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing even if it makes for some waiting in the case of Danielson.
Playing like he currently is though, Danielson is building hype for what he might one day bring to the NHL table. His blend of a 200-foot game with strong offensive instincts is a combination that Detroit doesn’t have an abundance of. He's the kind of player who could fill the Red Wings' long-standing hole as a second-line center, or he could even exceed these expectations. His offensive traits — stick-handling and shooting — are why Kane compared Danielson to Bedard. They’re also why he’s got Detroit’s front office so excited about what he can bring.
Until there’s a clear path, all Danielson can do is keep doing what he's doing, because one day, he’s going to make the Red Wings roster. And if the praise of NHL peers is any indication, that day is rapidly approaching.
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