Red Wings prospect Nate Danielson recorded three assists for Portland in a WHL playoff win against the Prince George Cougars
Red Wings prospect Nate Danielson recorded three assists for Portland in a WHL playoff win against the Prince George Cougars
Fresh off scoring a hat trick in a third-round WHL playoff series against the Prince George Cougars, Portland Winterhawks forward Marcus Nguyen had some jokes to tell, too. Asked about what helped him score so easily Monday night, he cracked, "I've got McDavid over here," motioning to his left where Red Wings prospect Nate Danielson sat next to him.
Whether hyperbole or high praise, Nguyen had to shout out Danielson as the primary assister on two of his goals. Danielson added a third assist at the 9:40 mark of the first period to accent what became a blowout win for the Winterhawks. Such playmaking prowess is a big part of why Danielson is an intriguing prospect, and it's only showing up more as the games become more meaningful for his team.
Ask Danielson about his success and he's a little deferential, too — that's kind of a hockey player's M.O. Opponents are shadowing him, keying on him, and yet Danielson is silently overcoming it. His 16 points (13 assists) are sixth in the WHL Playoffs and lead his team, something aided by his three-assist night.
"I think on the two plays on Mar's goal, I kind of came in wide both plays and I think they kind of got a little puck-focused," Danielson described of his first two assists. "And Mar did a good job finding ice and I was able to find him on both. I don't know if that's something that they're trying to do or not, but I just think it's worked out good."
Yeah, I'd say so too. Danielson made the right passes to open shooters and gave his team a big, early lead. After the game, Portland coach Mike Johnston noted "good decisions under pressure" that helped his team succeed, and it's hard to imagine Danielson's own success isn't part of this success.
Danielson's impact spanned further than the assist column. He was also 9-for-14 at the faceoff circle in a key game three that gives his team a 2-1 series lead.
In the future, Danielson could be a big add to the Red Wings' forward corps. He's certainly in the plans of general manager Steve Yzerman, who spoke to Danielson's future role in his end-of-season press conference. Particularly, he offers center depth that will help Detroit down the middle, down the line.
"Nate Danielson (we) drafted a year ago and Marco Kasper the year previous to that," Yzerman said April 19. "We think they’re good young prospects, really happy with how they’re coming. They’re not ready to play yet. I’m not ruling anything out for next year, but I think in time, we’re gonna be really solid down the middle."
There are some details to his game that will have to change. On the first two assists, driving wide doesn't always work at the NHL level as more skilled defensemen can stay in front and keep Danielson from finding the space to pass across. Moving up the center of the ice is a much more sure-fire way to generate a scoring chance, especially with Danielson's footspeed. However, these are small tendencies that can be adjusted, instead of any damning issues in his game. A good development camp and maybe even a season in Grand Rapids could polish these issues.
With a playmaking ability like he showed Monday night, Danielson is an exciting prospect for the Red Wings. While there's still some time before he can show it at the NHL level, a three-assist playoff game like his latest outing is no joke.
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