The Portland Winterhawks acquired Detroit Red Wings prospect Nate Danielson from the Brandon Wheat Kings Wednesday, Jan. 10 in exchange for forward Nick Johnson, defenseman Rhett Ravndahl, a 2025 first-round pick, a 2027 first-round pick, and a 2026 fifth-round pick. During his time with Brandon, Danielson served as their captain for the 2022-23 season up until the trade to Portland this season.
It was Danielson’s first time getting traded and with that, he said that there were some adjustments, but that he’s really enjoyed his time with Portland.
“I’ve really enjoyed my time and it was a bit of an adjustment at first coming here,” Danielson said. “The coaches have been awesome as well as all the guys, they’ve been great and I think I’ve kind of fit in pretty well with the team and done a good job of adjusting to all the systems and just the way Portland plays.”
Portland is a team that has the potential to make a deep run in the postseason. The speed of Portland’s play was one of the adjustments that Danielson has had to make. He said that their speed is something that they preach a lot. According to Danielson, that all starts with their back end. He said that their back end is super mobile and smart players.
“They talk and they move up right away,” Danielson said. “Our wingers kind of like to stretch the zone. I think we just do a good job of playing really fast in transition.”
As his Winterhawks teammates have made clear, he thinks that they have a good team and a ton of good players up and down the lineup. Portland has some of the top point producers in the WHL with players such as Luca Cagnoni and team captain Gabe Klassen. Being on a team like Portland has clearly pleased Danielson with this being his final junior season.
“I think just being able to go on that championship run for my last year of junior is pretty special,” Danielson said.
Danielson was drafted by Detroit ninth overall in the first round of the 2023 NHL Draft. Where he reports next season is unknown yet, but Detroit is a team on the rise, so there’s potential for him to end up there sooner rather than later. When it comes to what they’d like him to work on, Danielson said that there’s nothing too specific.
“I think they’ve been awesome,” Danielson said. “We do lots of video and different little skills that I’ll work on in practice and stuff like that. But I think they kind of just want me to play and I think probably one of the biggest messages was just to continue playing a good 200-foot game and don’t cheat the game and try to look for offense. Just to try to grow my overall game and the defensive side of it. I think one thing is just spend lots of time in the gym and get stronger and try to make that jump to pro as easy as it can be.”
Danielson said that they want to win a championship and that for him, he just wants to take it game by game. He said that he wants to help the team win whether that’s on offense or on defense shutting down the opposing team’s best player.
When it comes to Danielson’s game, he said he thinks he brings a good offensive scoring touch and that he’s a creative player.
“I like to make plays and also provide that scoring touch and as well as I think I’m someone who’s good in the faceoff circle and good at my own end of the ice and just the small little details like that that go a long way,” Danielson said.
This season’s Winterhawks team doesn’t revolve around any one or two players. While there are obviously a few players that stand out, it’s been a team effort this season. Their success has come from contributions up and down the lineup. Danielson attributes their success to their buy-in and how they play. He emphasized how unbelievable the coaching staff is, how they’ve been around the game a long time and they know what they’re all talking about.
“I think just starting from our top guys, everyone buys into the systems and the way we want to play, and I think that just trickles throughout our lineup and I think the four lines that can score and three d pairs that can shut down players as well as provide offense,” Danielson said. “I think we have a lot of depth in our team and same with a lot of scale and speed.”
In order to make a deep run in the playoffs, Danielson echoed the aspect of buying into their systems and how they’re coached.
“I think if we can do that, we can go on a long run,” Danielson said.
The fan base has turned out this season to support their team and it’s clear that those on the ice appreciate it. Danielson was excited to see how the playoffs would be in Portland and being able to see the VMC rocking with a lot of people.
“I think they help us out a lot on the ice,” Danielson said of the fan base in Portland. “I think they just give us that extra energy. It’s pretty fun to be a part of that on the ice.”
The team enjoys their time off the ice as well, specifically on the links as Danielson said they’ve been golfing quite a bit lately.
“It’s been pretty nice here, so we’ve all been going out on the golf course and having some fun there,” Danielson said.
Northwest Sports Desk 