Prospect Info: Grand Rapids Griffins, 2024 - 2025 Season
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ShanahanMan
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Oddbob
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- Jan 21, 2016
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Whole team hasn't been scoring, sometimes players get bumped down to try other things. It isn't always a message being sent or the player sucks. Haven't been paying attention to the Griffs, but those who do say the team hasn't been scoring a lot lately.
Not saying he isn't struggling, maybe he is, as I hoped for more pts also, but Kasper struggled offensively as well in the AHL and he is fine in the NHL. Some players games mesh better in the NHL than the AHL. Guys like Pulkkinen and many others did well in the AHL offensively and couldn't hang in the NHL, so lower scoring doesn't always mean much.
lilidk
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- Mar 4, 2008
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Don't forget Kasper playing with Raymond and Larkin.
I have never liked Danielson pick, he is typical third line center, Larkin was also third line center. Things could change, everything in his hands. Next season Danielson should play third line center in NHL, preferably with Kane and maybe Soderblom.
Only the most negative of people considered Larkin a 3C in the NHL. Everyone else had him as a top 6 C.
lilidk
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- Mar 4, 2008
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Sure, because he was behind two elite centers, but because he was behind those two didn’t mean that normal people thought 3C was his NHL upside.
lilidk
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- Mar 4, 2008
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Did I say that his upside was third line center? If I said that , my apologies.
Actually I prefer him over those 2 elite players for his leadership and for what he is for younger guys.
It's funny going back to the old thread. Dylan Larkin Pick
A lot of people had him as a better offensive Helm...with hands. He was the "safe pick", he was panned by quite a few people for being too safe.
He was a #2 in u of m behind Eichel. Stop with the false bs. He was the no 2c in both Michigan and the usdt behind only Eichel those 2 year's.
Eichel played for Boston University. I think they both played for USNTDP.
I thought Eichel was at u of M as well? I know he lineup at #2 because of e
Eichel at the USDT for sure. Maybe he was the #1 at u of m then instead. Been like 10 years though so memory is a little iffy.
Our Lady Peace
Registered User
Griffins vs Thunderbirds, 2/12. TL;DR incoming!!!
Tough finished to that - the 2-1 goal scorer McGing was blatantly offside and that was the backbreaker with under 5 mins left in the game. Griffins looked much, much better getting chances tonight, I thought they could've had 3 or 4 more goals easily. 4th line was great and I'd say that was Johannes best game all year. PP with Danielson/Mazur/Watson/Doucet/Buium looked excellent, I have no idea how at least one goal didn't go in for them. Griffins keep running into hot goaltenders man...
Danielson: A
• Would have an A+ if he finished on just one of those shots. He sure had some jump tonight and finally had some linemates that can keep up with him. Line 2 with Mazur and Shine and holy smokes they were dominant and all over the puck. Quick in transition, and quick on the attack. The line had a good first shift right off the opening faceoff and then cooked in the offensive zone during their 2nd shift. Shine almost buried from 15 feet out but just missed. 3rd shift they hemmed the T-Birds in the zone and Danielson drifted back on the doorstep to try a tap in feed and the puck trickled across the goal line
Shine fed Danielson and he got all of a one-timer in the slot but Ellis made a nice glove save
Mid-2nd shift with Snively and Watson had him feed Snively for a chance, and then drifted into the slot for an one-timer that just missed
PP mid-2nd he got ROBBED by Ellis all alone in the slot
Chances again at the start of the 3rd but couldn't bury lmao... he is so snakebitten. Yes I would like him to start finishing, but he's doing all the right things and I know he's gripping that stick when nothing is going in and he gets chance after chance. Dude had to have about 8-10 shot attempts. Puck was on his stick all night, in every zone
Mazur: A-
• Chemistry with Danielson and thank God coach made the change cause I was banging the table for this a lot
He, Danielson, Buium all looked great on the PP1 together on the first PP. Had a couple good looks but most importantly the puck movement was better than when they're stuck carrying lesser skilled guys on the PP, which has been part of the problem
He got absolutely robbed on that mid-2nd PP right in front from a great Danielson to Watson to Mazur play
Unfortunately he fumbled the chip-in entering the zone and the T-Bird fired it back down the ice into the empty net to make it 3-1
Wallinder: B-
• At the end of the 1st PP, Becher went to the left boards, avoided a check by making a spinning area pass to Wallinder at the left point, but Wallinder missed it. The T-Bird Peterson came out the box, went on a breakaway and scored. Now, the puck was bouncing slightly, but it was a soft pass that was slightly more to the middle, but as it went by WW looked flat footed and didn't catch the man coming so I wasn't impressed by his awareness and lack of urgency
Almost wired home a loose puck, got deflected out. He was getting quite a few shooting looks on the PP, but he's gotta wire one of them home
He made a cross ice stretch pass to absolutely nobody with under 4 mins left and iced the puck
Buium: B
• Made a bad pass into the middle of the NZ on a PP and T-Birds went right in and Campbell had to make a big save. He fumbled the puck just before that too. Kind of an off puck handling night for him
I do think he will need to work on the speed in which he pivots defending a rush. He might get beat against faster, stronger, better puck handling NHLers
Threw a couple funny looking hits lol. If this is the start of him trying to be a more physical player, I'm all for it
Otherwise, solid enough play overall
Tuomisto: A-
• Good keep at the line, made a quick pass to Johannes waiting in the slot who spun around to shoot and Seger cleaned up the rebound for the only Griffs goal
Escaping pressure, moving the puck well. I like how he just gets the puck on net. Been shooting a lot lately
Becher: A-
• I really like how well he tracks the puck when he doesn't have it, and I am really liking his decision making with the puck when he has it. Puck is continuing to follow him and he's making plays even with 3rd line AHL guys. He did an EXCELLENT job tracking the puck and had so many smart reads, touches, and plays on the PP in period 2
His line spent a great deal of time in the o-zone the shift shifting momentum right before Seger's line scored
Excellent first shift in period 2. Started a rush, give-and-go with Tuomisto and Becher went right to the net and almost roofed a backhand shot
They've relied on him being a transporter of the puck on PP2. Almost wired on home after another give-and-go with Tuomisto on the PP but Ellis made yet another nice pad save
Great pressure defensively and supporting the puck. Great work along the boards in the dirty areas using his body and getting possession
Since they're facing each other for the first time, I'll add my thoughts on #10 OA in 2023. I'm trying to be unbiased as possible, but I've watched him about 8 times in 2025 so I'm just trying to form an opinion of what this player is made of in the AHL
Dvorsky: B
• He's listed as a center but he takes the routes that a winger does. I notice a lot he's the F1 but he's center with lacking foot speed. Are they just telling him to skate wherever he wants due to his deficiency there? His line got pinned in where GR's 4th line scored the only goal of the night
In the late 2nd Watson ran over a guy just outside the Griffs blueline, Mazur came in to collect the puck and two T-Birds who are already focused and involved there, Dvorsky has his attention on this play where the Griffins go on a THREE ON ZERO and Rafferty couldn't bury the breakaway. I'm not sure he knew Danielson and Viro were with him. Dvorsky is the center and he focused his attention away from his position to that scrumb, instead of the puck? These are the plays, at least as a center that have me questioning his off-puck intelligence
Had a good faceoff win (he's pretty good on the dot) and got a shot off that Campbell swallowed up. Shift before that he stickhandled near the blueline escaping pressure and then fed a quick pass near the back door that the T-Bird couldn't handle
Definitely has nifty small area passing ability and quick hands, and if you let him loose he can definitely make you pay quickly. I just don't see him creating space with or without the puck as much as you'd think from looking at his stats. IMHO he has a lot of work to do as a prospect doing little things if he wants to produce in the NHL. He's 19 still though and the production can't be ignored. He has this summer to get stronger and quicker but for his development I would think, unless he has a monster offseason and training camp, he starts in Springfield in October and is first on the callup list for St. Louis. With added speed and defensive coaching, he could be a good #2 LW/RW, PP1 triggerman for the Blues
Tough finished to that - the 2-1 goal scorer McGing was blatantly offside and that was the backbreaker with under 5 mins left in the game. Griffins looked much, much better getting chances tonight, I thought they could've had 3 or 4 more goals easily. 4th line was great and I'd say that was Johannes best game all year. PP with Danielson/Mazur/Watson/Doucet/Buium looked excellent, I have no idea how at least one goal didn't go in for them. Griffins keep running into hot goaltenders man...
Danielson: A
• Would have an A+ if he finished on just one of those shots. He sure had some jump tonight and finally had some linemates that can keep up with him. Line 2 with Mazur and Shine and holy smokes they were dominant and all over the puck. Quick in transition, and quick on the attack. The line had a good first shift right off the opening faceoff and then cooked in the offensive zone during their 2nd shift. Shine almost buried from 15 feet out but just missed. 3rd shift they hemmed the T-Birds in the zone and Danielson drifted back on the doorstep to try a tap in feed and the puck trickled across the goal line
Shine fed Danielson and he got all of a one-timer in the slot but Ellis made a nice glove save
Mid-2nd shift with Snively and Watson had him feed Snively for a chance, and then drifted into the slot for an one-timer that just missed
PP mid-2nd he got ROBBED by Ellis all alone in the slot
Chances again at the start of the 3rd but couldn't bury lmao... he is so snakebitten. Yes I would like him to start finishing, but he's doing all the right things and I know he's gripping that stick when nothing is going in and he gets chance after chance. Dude had to have about 8-10 shot attempts. Puck was on his stick all night, in every zone
Mazur: A-
• Chemistry with Danielson and thank God coach made the change cause I was banging the table for this a lot
He, Danielson, Buium all looked great on the PP1 together on the first PP. Had a couple good looks but most importantly the puck movement was better than when they're stuck carrying lesser skilled guys on the PP, which has been part of the problem
He got absolutely robbed on that mid-2nd PP right in front from a great Danielson to Watson to Mazur play
Unfortunately he fumbled the chip-in entering the zone and the T-Bird fired it back down the ice into the empty net to make it 3-1
Wallinder: B-
• At the end of the 1st PP, Becher went to the left boards, avoided a check by making a spinning area pass to Wallinder at the left point, but Wallinder missed it. The T-Bird Peterson came out the box, went on a breakaway and scored. Now, the puck was bouncing slightly, but it was a soft pass that was slightly more to the middle, but as it went by WW looked flat footed and didn't catch the man coming so I wasn't impressed by his awareness and lack of urgency
Almost wired home a loose puck, got deflected out. He was getting quite a few shooting looks on the PP, but he's gotta wire one of them home
He made a cross ice stretch pass to absolutely nobody with under 4 mins left and iced the puck
Buium: B
• Made a bad pass into the middle of the NZ on a PP and T-Birds went right in and Campbell had to make a big save. He fumbled the puck just before that too. Kind of an off puck handling night for him
I do think he will need to work on the speed in which he pivots defending a rush. He might get beat against faster, stronger, better puck handling NHLers
Threw a couple funny looking hits lol. If this is the start of him trying to be a more physical player, I'm all for it
Otherwise, solid enough play overall
Tuomisto: A-
• Good keep at the line, made a quick pass to Johannes waiting in the slot who spun around to shoot and Seger cleaned up the rebound for the only Griffs goal
Escaping pressure, moving the puck well. I like how he just gets the puck on net. Been shooting a lot lately
Becher: A-
• I really like how well he tracks the puck when he doesn't have it, and I am really liking his decision making with the puck when he has it. Puck is continuing to follow him and he's making plays even with 3rd line AHL guys. He did an EXCELLENT job tracking the puck and had so many smart reads, touches, and plays on the PP in period 2
His line spent a great deal of time in the o-zone the shift shifting momentum right before Seger's line scored
Excellent first shift in period 2. Started a rush, give-and-go with Tuomisto and Becher went right to the net and almost roofed a backhand shot
They've relied on him being a transporter of the puck on PP2. Almost wired on home after another give-and-go with Tuomisto on the PP but Ellis made yet another nice pad save
Great pressure defensively and supporting the puck. Great work along the boards in the dirty areas using his body and getting possession
Since they're facing each other for the first time, I'll add my thoughts on #10 OA in 2023. I'm trying to be unbiased as possible, but I've watched him about 8 times in 2025 so I'm just trying to form an opinion of what this player is made of in the AHL
Dvorsky: B
• He's listed as a center but he takes the routes that a winger does. I notice a lot he's the F1 but he's center with lacking foot speed. Are they just telling him to skate wherever he wants due to his deficiency there? His line got pinned in where GR's 4th line scored the only goal of the night
In the late 2nd Watson ran over a guy just outside the Griffs blueline, Mazur came in to collect the puck and two T-Birds who are already focused and involved there, Dvorsky has his attention on this play where the Griffins go on a THREE ON ZERO and Rafferty couldn't bury the breakaway. I'm not sure he knew Danielson and Viro were with him. Dvorsky is the center and he focused his attention away from his position to that scrumb, instead of the puck? These are the plays, at least as a center that have me questioning his off-puck intelligence
Had a good faceoff win (he's pretty good on the dot) and got a shot off that Campbell swallowed up. Shift before that he stickhandled near the blueline escaping pressure and then fed a quick pass near the back door that the T-Bird couldn't handle
Definitely has nifty small area passing ability and quick hands, and if you let him loose he can definitely make you pay quickly. I just don't see him creating space with or without the puck as much as you'd think from looking at his stats. IMHO he has a lot of work to do as a prospect doing little things if he wants to produce in the NHL. He's 19 still though and the production can't be ignored. He has this summer to get stronger and quicker but for his development I would think, unless he has a monster offseason and training camp, he starts in Springfield in October and is first on the callup list for St. Louis. With added speed and defensive coaching, he could be a good #2 LW/RW, PP1 triggerman for the Blues
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ShanahanMan
Registered User
I mean this with respect since you obviously watch a lot of games, but I just don’t see how you can continuously give Danielson A grades game after game when he’s been pointless the majority of the time.
Great job once again. Look forward to your reports every game
Our Lady Peace
Registered User
If I see a player continually doing the right things, utilizing teammates well, and creating chances on their own, I'll give you good grades. Not to mention he's a stud defensively every single game. Not just breaking up plays, but creating offensive transition more often than not. You can say my grades are generous based on his numbers, but players don't score every game unless they're McDavid or MacKinnon. So I'll watch if he does the things I stated above
Sometimes the puck just doesn't go in. I am shocked Danielson doesn't have at least 10-15 more points. I would say he's been pretty snake-bitten this year. What do I know though. I think this guy does many great things offensively and defensively that I believe will translate to surprisingly good numbers in the NHL. He's not going to drag his linemates through the mud offensively like a MacKinnon
Watching the point totals is that it doesn't factor all the little things and all the context. It's why scouts watch young players over and over to formulate opinions and not highlight packages or stat sheets
Next, you factor in the team and the system they play under. Red Wings roster has gone 15-5-1 under Todd McLellan vs Lalonde. A drastic change with the same team. GR are 6th in goals against, and 26th in goals for. Dan Watson's system is predicated on defense-first play. The AHL in general is a low scoring league too
If Danielson makes a bad play, or isn't handling passes, or is not shooting the puck, I have called him out for that. Some games he has been quieter offensively than others, but he frequently displays very good offensive talent and the ability to generate high-percentage plays on his own. He has clearly shown the ability to adjust to pro hockey in that regard
I give guys like Wallinder, who's played many years of pro hockey including an AHL rookie season last year and is approaching age 23, lower grades because of their decision making at this level. Not to mention he's not very good at generating offense, something he was prided on in the SHL
I try to call it like I see it. If a player in the AHL has a lazy, terrible giveaway and the pucks ends up in their net, they will get something of a C- grade. Even a D if they outright suck the entire game
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But at some point he needs to start producing. He was a top 10 pick, he’s put up points in just 3 of his last 21 games.
Our Lady Peace
Registered User
I agree. On the stat sheet it's tough looking at zeroes game after game. It's even harder watching the Griffins get shutout like they did 3 games in a row
I'm optimistic that once Lombardi comes back soon the team will be cooking up more offense to which Danielson will benefit greatly from, especially on the stats sheet
We'll see how this plays out down the stretch
All but a very few of the highest scoring players need to play with skilled players to put up points. The Griffins have been without Mazur, Lombardi and now Soderblom, whose promotion coincides with Danielson's and the team's recent offensive struggles. Berggren, AlJo and Ed are in the NHL full-time. There simply isn't a lot of offensive talent unless everyone's healthy and even then, it's still a defensive-oriented team and good because of it. Another issue is the PP. The Griffins are 25th OA on the PP at 17.0 per cent, after finishing 26th on the PP last season at 17.2 per cent. PP production usually plays a big part in a team's best players' point totals, but it isn't happening for GR prospects.
I'm not worried about Danielson's NHL future, he's always to me seemed more likely to be a Danault/William Karlson type than a 70-point 2C. What he does in the playoffs will be a better gauge of where he is and the value he has than anything that happens the rest of the regular season.
I'm not worried about Danielson's NHL future, he's always to me seemed more likely to be a Danault/William Karlson type than a 70-point 2C. What he does in the playoffs will be a better gauge of where he is and the value he has than anything that happens the rest of the regular season.
lilidk
Registered User
- Mar 4, 2008
- 11,441
- 4,550
I could give you about 15 prospects who could be drafted where he was drafted. So far he's progressing nicely, too early to worry about him
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