Detroit Red Wings
Danielson Couldn’t Find Footing With Red Wings
Rookie center had gone 11 games without a point
The Detroit Red Wings haven’t given up on center Nate Danielson.
“He’s still figuring out the game here, and I think he’s got a tremendous toolbox,” Detroit coach Todd McLellan said.
At the same time, Danielson is going to have to give them a lot more if he wants to be an NHL regular.
Assigned to the AHL Grand Rapids Griffins on Tuesday, Danielson, 21, had gone 11 consecutive games without registering a point. It had been 13 games since he scored a goal.
UPDATE: The #RedWings have assigned forward Nate Danielson to the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins. pic.twitter.com/lfU4Rutzj5
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) January 6, 2026
“Nate is going to have to produce some offense over time,” McLellan said. “He’s got to put it all together.”
He was a healthy scratch as the Red Wings were in Ottawa on Monday to face the Senators. If the press box was going to continue to be his locale at the NHL level, getting him back to the AHL, where he’ll probably play top-six minutes, is the wisest alternative.
“Sometimes the goals that you get when you’re 20 and when you’re 40 – you look at JVR – they’re a little bit greasy,” McLellan said. “I hate when people use words like grinding-type goals. They’re rebounds, they’re tip-ins. There’s something off of a goaltender that you happen to be in the right spot, and you whack it in.
“It’s not always just the playmaking and the sweet finishes and that type of stuff. And I think there’s more of those goals in Danny or plays in Danny, and that’ll come out over time. We’ll help them with that.
“But, you know, we want to make sure he maintains a level of offensive confidence as well. And he’s got to participate in that a bit too.”
That latter reason is why, for the time being, Grand Rapids is the best place for Danielson to be playing.
Why Wouldn’t The Red Wings Send Down Kasper?
The oft-asked question, and it’s certainly legit to pose it, is why wasn’t struggling forward Marco Kasper the one to go down to the minors?
Kasper hasn’t scored since a two-goal game at Los Angeles on October 30. He’s accumulated three assists in the past 33 games.
The game, though, isn’t just about offense. Kasper contributes elements to the Red Wings’ cause that Danielson wasn’t.
Loving the physicality from Marco Kasper today#LGRW 👻
— Derek Frazier (@FrazierDerekJr) January 3, 2026
Kasper leads the Red Wings with 96 hits. That’s 30 more than any other forward on the team. His 26 shot blocks are tied for fifth among the club’s forwards. He can kill penalties and win pucks back with his tenacity.
Kasper also has a track record. He scored 19 goals in the NHL last season. Danielson doesn’t have that level of production on his resume.
Yes, Kasper absolutely needs to improve his offensive game. But he has done it in the past, and that buys him a Mulligan that Danielson hasn’t yet earned.
I’ll defer to Rink Rat on this one.
Hi OB. Fully support sending Danielson down. As far as Kasper, it’s true he does more hitting than most on this team…. but that’s the key words “this team”. This team is not known for being physical whatsoever. The issue with Marco, is that offensively his positioning is very poor.. he hardly ever puts himself in scoring position. His net front presence needs to improved drastically. The guy’s stat line is not that impressive despite of this article, in fact if you really examine it , it’s downright awful. I too hope somehow he returns to the guy we saw last year. But facts are facts. The guy is on pace for a 10 or 15-point season. That is completely unacceptable. Thx OB!
Very well put
Makes sense. With Leonard probably surpassing his games needed to play and Danielson replacing him in GR, Kasper should be the next guy down to get his confidence back before it’s too late.
Wouldn’t mind having Shine back up for a stint to replace Kasper’s strength plus he’d pop in a few goals too
We could see the 6’4″ 225 pound Olympian Tralmarks discussed in a DHN article posted just before this one. He scored the first goal Saturday night on the doorstep off a beautiful pass from Kannok-Leipert. He has the ability… Big body that can shoot. Sounds like he and MBN might be nice additions in the second half.
Shine is a 31yr old career minor leaguer. Nice story but not a future NHL player. He has played nine years and has only a few NHL games. Nice guy, tries hard but not really a bug leaguer
True story
Wingers,
I’m a fan not a big time NHL coach like TM but there are two ends of a hockey game with a middle that is an open free for all. Those two ends are offense and defense; players of any consequence need to be reasonably proficient at both ends of the ice.
Kasper is a one trick pony regardless of how many hits he has registered. He hasn’t scored squat and there isn’t a great deal of season left. There is no indication Kasper’s game is headed anywhere but a continuous spiral circling the drain, down.
There has to be at least one player on that entire Griffins squad that can do at least as good of a job as Kasper. There also might be one that can even score a goal if we look hard enough.
Lose Kasper and Talbot before time runs out on all of us…
PBB
We’ll go with TM, constant whiners, even after a win, should be demoted to Nextdoor.com.
Nothing wrong with Talbot. He has been fine. Kasper is really a mystery.
Determining a player as a one-trick pony so quickly does not make sense. And they are a little over half of the season. What do you mean in terms of there isn’t a great deal of the season left. Finally, he is not spiraling down.
With that stated, I would be okay with sending him down if it meant MBN gets a shot.
Not a bad move, especially since it makes room for Leonard. I’m not down on Danielson or Kasper. Both are only 21 years old. They’ll both be much better in a year or two.
Think thats true. Give them time away from the spotlight to work on their games and play a lot in all situations. They especially want them to play in the AHL playoffs.
Good points all. Glad that GR is stocked with help.
Makes sense and coach T was very pointed: “Nate is going to have to produce some offense over time,” McLellan said. “He’s got to put it all together.”
Danielson made some nifty moves and scored some nice goals that were called back. However, he has to produce more. He does not shoot the puck enough on goal. Let him develop more in GR.
In terms of Kasper, he too must start producing on the offensive side. I still think he comes out of this funk.
Glad that we have a hockey guy as coach who is not afraid to tell it like it is.
Danielson was constantly getting pushed out of plays and out of puck battles. He looks like he needs to add about 10 pounds of muscle and a good deal more “snarl” to make it in the NHL. Kind of like Raymond did between his 2nd and 3rd season. That’s when he went from 17 goals to 31 goals.
As for Kasper, maybe he needs to spend some time with a sports psychologist. He’s got all of the tools but he’s lost something since the end of last year. Everything he does seems slower and more “forced” this year.
We need the instinctual Kasper back, not the thinking Kasper we’ve seen for the past 43 games. It’s in him. The question is: How does Todd bring it out of him again?
Good point Older
I’m really starting to question these first round picks.