Griffins Rookies Danielson, Seger, Buium Discuss Challenges, Offseason Plans
At the end of the 2024-25 season, I sat down with rookie defender Shai Buium and forwards Nate Danielson and Gabriel Seger to discuss the challenges they faced in their first season and what they plan on working on this offseason.
Brought to the Table
Seger may have played a quiet game, but excelled on faceoffs, an area the Griffins struggled with all season. According to Head Coach Dan Watson, “Seger was the only guy above 50%.”
On top of his faceoff work, Seger was a good puck mover. His silent style of skating allowed Seger to bring many plays up ice and within scoring range.
By the end of the season, he had 10 goals and seven assists. However, the highlight of the season came on November 8, 2024, at Rockford, where he had his first multi-goal game of his professional career.
Seger ended the regular season on a three-game point streak.
Danielson started slow and then exploded, landing in the top six on the Griffins with 39 points. He led the team with four short-handed points. All of which were assists.
While Danielson wasn’t always able to find the back of the net, his ability to read the ice allowed him to drive and create plays. Also, once Danielson got hot, it was hard to put out the fire. He had eight multi-point games throughout the 2024-25 season. The highlight of those multi-point games was on April 4th and 5th when he had back-to-back three-point games (2g, 4a) against the Rockford IceHogs.
Buium takes pride in his ability to be a two-way defenseman who can produce at both even strength and special teams. “I’m physical and I try to play as hard as I can,” said Buium of his skills. “I compete really hard and try to generate offense at the same time.”
By the end of the 2024-25 season, he was fifth on the team and led all defenders with 11 power play points.
Challenges
The different challenges rookies face throughout the season allow them to see what else they need to become successful at the professional level. Sometimes it’s mental. Sometimes it’s physical.
For Danielson, the amount of games in the AHL was similar to the WHL. So, the length of the season was a minor adjustment compared to the physicality of the game. “You’re playing stronger people,” said Danielson. “I think just the grind of it and just getting through all the games.”
After five seasons at the collegiate level, Seger noted the grind was something he had to get used to as well. “Off the ice, it’s more different than college. It’s more travel. A lot of hours on the bus. More games. A longer season, too,” said Seger. “So, staying dialed in for a longer period of time.”
Seger noted that some things balanced out as the season went along. One of those things was coming home late from a game or travel and having practice the next day. “You don’t have school, though. So it kind of evens out,” explains Seger. “But, it’s definitely something to get used to.”
Summers can be full of relaxation for many athletes. However, during his rookie season, Buium realized how important it was to put in work during the offseason. Especially when it comes to developing his skating. “The games a little faster, a little more physical,” said Buium. “If you want to dominate at this level, you gotta really put in the work.”
Offseason Plans
As Buium said, using the offseason to prepare is incredibly important to a player’s development. Plus, when you’re coming off your rookie season, it shows management and coaches you’re serious about honing your skills to become the best at your craft.
Both Seger and Buium plan to work on their strength and skating this offseason. Seger thinks this will help him start to produce offensively. “I think I did a good job of being reliable and being good defensively,” said Seger. “Work hard and take another step offensively and help the team that way, too.”
To work on his speed and quickness, Buium is branching out from doing off-ice workouts as he feels it’s important to meld the two workouts into one. “I think it’s all of it together. You do a lot of off-ice workouts. You get on the track and do some sprints,” explained Buium. “You get on the ice and you work on your stride. Then, it all comes together in the end.”
Like Seger and Buium, Danielson has plans of working on his quickness through honing his first three steps this summer. Danielson also explained that he wants to get bigger and stronger and gain some weight this offseason.
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You can watch their interviews on the “Graced By Rain” YouTube channel:
