The Detroit Red Wings 2023-24 season is underway at this point. They opened things up out east in New Jersey. They did so without 2023 first-rounder Nate Danielson. There was some speculation that the youngster had a chance of breaking camp with the team.
The Detroit Red Wings pushed Danielson hard. Between a Prospect Tournament performance and the gauntlet of training camp this year, Danielson was pushing to make the opening night roster. Ultimately, this fell through, and he was assigned back to the Brandon Wheat Kings of the WHL.
The good news is he’s picked up right where he left off. He’s seemingly coping with not making the roster well, as he’s back to being a force in the WHL for Brandon. It would have been cool to see Danielson break camp with the team, but it was just something that was unable to work out, given the team’s roster and development plans for their youngster.
Before being drafted this summer, Danielson had a fantastic 2022-23 season with the Wheat Kings, where he was the team’s captain. He played in 68 games with Brandon, where he went on to score 33 goals and add 45 assists for 78 total points.
Detroit Red Wings send Nate Danielson back to juniors.
He was a focal point of the Wheat Kings team last season as their captain, and after failing to make the Red Wings roster, he’s headed back to Brandon. He’s resumed his captaincy of the team and is underway on the 2023-24 season with the WHL squad, looking to put up numbers.
So far, Danielson has done an excellent job making his presence known. He’s a 200-foot player, so he shines defensively as well, but he found a way to make an “I’m back” statement early on. He scored an overtime winner to seal the deal on a Wheat Kings win.
Nate Danielson OT winner! 👀 🚨 #LGRW pic.twitter.com/3rGV1oUusj
— Winged Wheel Podcast (@WingedWheelPod) October 12, 2023
Danielson let one rip, beating the goalie to secure the victory for his team. It was a heck of a goal and a nice little “I’m back” for his team as he has begun to settle in with his WHL squad. The Red Wings are banking on the long game with Danielson, and another year in Juniors could be beneficial for Danielson to continue to strengthen his game.
The Red Wings are thrilled with what could be with Danielson. They need to find ways to extract this from him once he gets to the NHL-level. He had a good preseason performance and showed flashes of the 200-foot player he can be.
He may not have started the 2023-24 season in Detroit, but another year with Brandon tearing it up in Juniors may not be the worst thing in the world.