How Red Wings prospects are trending in Grand Rapids: Midseason update

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.

For as much as the focus in Detroit lately has been on the Red Wings play under new head coach Todd McLellan, the big picture of the franchise is still heavily dependent on its prospect pipeline.

And in Grand Rapids, the teams AHL affiliate is leading its division midway through the season and relying heavily on some of Detroit s top prospects to get there.

Advertisement So, with the season just past its halfway point, we took a weekend trip to Grand Rapids to check in on some of the top Red Wings prospects and how theyve trended as the season has gone along.

Nate Danielson, 20, C Danielson is Detroits top prospect in Grand Rapids, and with that comes a bit of a microscope, especially when it comes to his production.

And through that lens, its been an interesting season for him.

There was a point about a month ago, for example, where it looked like Danielson was really starting to pop statistically.

After a quieter start, he had 12 points in 12 games from November 13 to December 13.

In the 14 games since, though, he has just 6 points.

Some of that has been across the board for the Griffins, who have cooled off a bit of late, but I was particularly curious what Danielsons offensive game would look like when I saw him Friday and came away impressed.

He had an assist, hit a post on another chance and used his speed wide to create potential looks as well.

The Griffins night went sour after they gave up a 3-0 lead to lose 5-4 in a shootout, leading to a frustrated locker room, but I thought Danielson was one of the bright spots of the game.

Hes been great, Danielsons linemate Austin Watson said.

It takes a little bit of time to get used to the physicality of the game its a little tighter, a little quicker but hes a really good 200-foot hockey player.

He doesnt shy away from getting in on the battles, getting in on the forecheck, and hes been a great player for us all year long.

Talking to Danielson that morning, he talked about learning to play differently than he had in junior hockey namely, You cant just go through everyone.

Hes learned to use teammates more and about the balance of knowing when to try to make a play versus keeping it simple.

Advertisement Knowing when to pick your spots, Danielson said.

And I feel like, too, the strength just learning how to protect the puck a little bit more, and I feel like Ive gotten a lot better at that.

One point Griffins coach Dan Watson made was the tough spot Danielson has been put in during the first half, mainly in the form of injuries to Amadeus Lombardi, Carter Mazur and Tim Gettinger.

Thats led to Danielson needing to eat a significant amount of minutes for Grand Rapids.

And I think what happens there, you start to lack a little bit (of) energy at times, the coach said.

Hes found that energy back again.

You can see it in his skating, you can see it in the way hes playing.

Yes, the points arent there consistently, but I think they will be in the second half.

I think he will get more points.

Im sure hes frustrated offensively with his production, much like (Marco) Kasper was last year, much like Lombardi was.

Its hard.

Its a hard transition.

But with that said, hes on our power play, hes on our penalty kill, he plays hard five-on-five minutes, empty net situations.

Weve thrown him into the fire, and hes handled it extremely well with a ton of maturity.

On a Griffins team that tends to win with defense and goaltending moreso than pure offense they average 2.92 goals per game there are also not as many easy points up for grabs.

I continue to see real offense in Danielsons game, though, and think its only a matter of time before it starts showing up more consistently in the box score.

William Wallinder, 22, LHD Wallinder is another player the Griffins are leaning on heavily.

With William Lagesson called up in Detroit, Wallinders been getting top-pair minutes in addition to special teams work.

With that, Watson said, have come ups and downs.

And one of those downs showed up in Fridays game, as Wallinders power-play unit gave up a short-handed goal as part of the blown lead.

But while Wallinder isnt NHL -ready yet, theres still been growth in his game and a pretty clear path to the next level as he progresses.

Advertisement For him to keep developing, its about being consistent that consistent intensity, every single game, Watson said.

Once he gets that, I think hell be an NHLer.

Wallinders skating is so good, its hard not to see him at least playing NHL games.

At 6-foot-4, being able to move like that gives him a very projectable profile, particularly defensively.

Skatings very good, hes got a long stick, hes very good at surfing and gapping and killing plays in the neutral zone, Watson said.

For all those reasons, I think Wallinder can be a nice third-pairing defender who can impact transition both ways, just as long as he can find that consistent intensity.

Watson also noted he feels theres more offense in Wallinder than hes shown and theyre working with him on that, getting him more active on the blue line and finding shot lanes.

Offense from the back end is always great, but really, its the defensive tools and transition elements that should get Wallinder to the next level.

And it all starts with just finding (and maintaining) an NHL intensity level.

Shai Buium, 21, LHD Another big-bodied blueliner in Grand Rapids, Buiums skating is the area of growth that most stands out.

I think its come a long way, Watson said.

I think he continually looks better and better each month.

I know that he works hard at it in the summertime.

When the skating coach is here, hes with her every single day that shes here.

Its something thats got to be a focus of his.

And if he can really shore up his skating and continue to grow in that aspect of his game, thats going to help him get to that next level.

Thats always been the key for Buium, but the progress is encouraging and speaks to the effort hes put in.

And he has offense in his game, too hes been at multiple spots on the power play for the Griffins this year and was up top on one of the units when I saw him Friday.

He had a pair of assists in that game and showed nice poise with the puck, too.

Advertisement He can of course keep working at his skating, though, and if it keeps progressing well, his vision and frame give him a nice profile as a big-bodied puck-mover.

One thing I thought was interesting about Buium is his hunger for video.

I asked him a question about how to keep the massive amount of information now available to players from becoming too much, and he (politely) rejected the premise.

I never look at it like that, for me, he said.

Ive always been a guy who loves to just go into the video room and ask for video.

Im probably pretty annoying about it, honestly.

But I dont think its ever too much for me.

That bodes well for his development.

Elmer Soderblom, 23, LW Soderblom might be the most interesting Griffin of late, with 6 points in his last five games and 9 in his last 10.

Perhaps more important than that, though, hes started to make more of a physical impact which might be the most important thing the Red Wings need to see from him to get back to Detroit.

Elmers playing with a ton of confidence, Dan Watson said.

It started with him skating and moving his feet.

It started with him making the right plays with the puck.

Then it translated into getting in on the forecheck, being physical as an F1 being physical at the right times and doing it the right way with detail.

All along, Soderblom has been a unique player because of his combination of size (6-foot-8) and skill.

But without that key physical element, the size wasnt being used, reducing his game to that of a smaller skill player but without the small-area quickness and agility those players tend to have.

But if Soderblom can use his big frame on the forecheck, it unlocks new dimensions of his game.

And that certainly seemed to be the case when I saw him.

As impressive as his hands are for his size, his big shot is just as good a path (if not better) to scoring.

Being an imposing presence who can then mix in his skill, rather than relying on it, might be the key for him.

Advertisement Soderblom has a lot of buzz around him in Grand Rapids, so hes definitely one to watch down the stretch.

Sebastian Cossa, 22, G I didnt get to see Cossa play Friday he started Saturday so Ill keep this one short, but Detroits 2021 first-round pick continues to roll along in Grand Rapids.

After turning in a .913 save percentage in the AHL last season, hes a tick up at a .917 this time around, good for top 10 in the league.

The Grand Rapids net is a little more crowded with Jack Campbell and Ville Husso both in the AHL, which has given the team a real position of strength.

But the Griffins will have to take care in managing those reps so Cossa still gets enough work.

(Top photo of Nate Danielson: Nicolas Carrillo / Grand Rapids Griffins).

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