“Nate Danielson: One of the reasons we ranked Nate Danielson near the end of our first round on our 2023 draft board was his relatively pedestrian playmaking ability. We appreciated his skating, two-way game, and physical skills, but we felt he didn’t create enough scoring chances for his linemates, especially off the rush, but that hasn’t been a problem for him at all in preseason.
Surrounded by more talent, Danielson used his speed to push back defenders and create openings for others. He didn’t attack at one speed as in the WHL, but varied his tempo to make defenders hesitate and link with teammates. And he conserved the same hard style of game, making many plays directly off the wall. His performances were very encouraging.
If Danielson can maintain this higher level of performance this season in the WHL, we will change our upside projection to a top-six role..
Simon Edvinsson: Slowly but surely, Simon Edvinsson is becoming more reliable. He’s more capable of judging the risk of his plays and at timing his offensive interventions. He’s still misjudging some defensive and offensive situations and getting beat off the mark by opponents,, but for the most part, his impact on games in the preseason has been consistently positive.
Edvinsson evaded the forecheck with agility moves – the kind that a 6-foot-6 defencemen like him can’t usually pull off – and found teammates with great passes near the net. He could be more proactive in the defensive zone, but his rush defence could become one of the best in the league at some point. Attackers just couldn’t beat him in the neutral zone preseason due to his combination of reach and mobility.
This was one of his best plays. He got the puck at the offensive line off a delay, used his speed to dangle through a defender and get to the slot, and spotted one of his teammates attacking across the ice inside his move. The play barely missed, but he didn’t give up. He circled up, provided another passing option, got the puck inside space, and attempted another shot at the net”
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“Nate Danielson: One of the reasons we ranked Nate Danielson near the end of our first round on our 2023 draft board was his relatively pedestrian playmaking ability. We appreciated his skating, two-way game, and physical skills, but we felt he didn’t create enough scoring chances for his linemates, especially off the rush, but that hasn’t been a problem for him at all in preseason.
Surrounded by more talent, Danielson used his speed to push back defenders and create openings for others. He didn’t attack at one speed as in the WHL, but varied his tempo to make defenders hesitate and link with teammates. And he conserved the same hard style of game, making many plays directly off the wall. His performances were very encouraging.
If Danielson can maintain this higher level of performance this season in the WHL, we will change our upside projection to a top-six role..
Simon Edvinsson: Slowly but surely, Simon Edvinsson is becoming more reliable. He’s more capable of judging the risk of his plays and at timing his offensive interventions. He’s still misjudging some defensive and offensive situations and getting beat off the mark by opponents,, but for the most part, his impact on games in the preseason has been consistently positive.
Edvinsson evaded the forecheck with agility moves – the kind that a 6-foot-6 defencemen like him can’t usually pull off – and found teammates with great passes near the net. He could be more proactive in the defensive zone, but his rush defence could become one of the best in the league at some point. Attackers just couldn’t beat him in the neutral zone preseason due to his combination of reach and mobility.
This was one of his best plays. He got the puck at the offensive line off a delay, used his speed to dangle through a defender and get to the slot, and spotted one of his teammates attacking across the ice inside his move. The play barely missed, but he didn’t give up. He circled up, provided another passing option, got the puck inside space, and attempted another shot at the net”
Recall Edvinsson you cowards