Canadian Premier League Scouting Database – Daniel Nimick

From the very first time I watched Dan Nimick play, I knew a player analysis of the Newfoundland defender would be inevitable. The man from Happy Valley-Goose Bay enjoyed a happy time at Western Michigan across his college career, even earning the attention of Vancouver Whitecaps at the 2023 MLS SuperDraft. But as luck would have it, Dan Nimick would instead find his home in Halifax, closer to home, just a few months later. Not so super on Vancouver’s part.

Since making his professional debut against Atletico on April 15, Nimick has not missed a minute of action inside the 2023 CPL season. Along the way, he’s been integral to Halifax’s success both in bringing the ball out from the back and defending like his life depends on it. Here is our analysis of Daniel Nimick, and why clubs should keep the 22-year-old toward the top of their radar.

DEFENSIVE PRINCIPLES

Dan Nimick caught the eye right from his first match simply for the physicality by which he defends. He smartly adjusts his positioning to cover in the wide areas, to sweep in behind other members of his defense, and to react to any pass over the top.

But once in those battles for a loose ball or a 1v1, Nimick combines not only the pace to reach the ball first, but the physicality and strength to shepherd the ball away safely.

Given the high position of Zachary Fernandez in attack, Dan Nimick often has to cover his team’s right-side in the immediacy of transitions. Their back-three rest-defense then must shift across to cover those spaces as the opposition play down that side, and Nimick is often the first one required to make his presence felt. Luckily for Patrice Gheisar, the 22-year-old is fantastic at making his presence felt.

Nimick’s physical frame and 6’2 height makes him an imposing figure, and that means that tricky attackers often feel like they must go to ground to have any shot of beating the man. One simple touch and attackers often fall to the floor in hopes of a foul, with Nimick calmly carrying the ball away without worry.

But speedy attackers also struggle to deal with Nimick’s brute strength, given that he combines that power with speed. Often giving himself a yard of space to work with away from the nearest striker, Nimick is excellent at quickly covering ground and making up for lost time. He will then coolly use that strength to shepherd the play away from danger, stepping up to make necessary last-minute challenges.

He’ll use his body when necessary to win the ball, but he’s also great about angling his approach to delay the attack and limit the opposition’s progress forward.

Any time a defender makes this move to cover for their full-back in a back-four shape, spaces can open between the centre-backs. So when making this shift, Nimick must remember to close the gap quickly. A leisurely approach will lead to clever attackers exploiting that space, just as Atletico Ottawa found here in their 2-0 win against the Wanderers.

This is something for the entire team to consider in their defensive transitions, ensuring that all defenders move across at the right moments to not leave any gaps. But Nimick’s own speed and strength to win challenges will continue to be key in leaving less room for error.

On the rare occasion that Nimick goes to ground rather than using brute force, the Newfoundland defender times his challenges well and slides in safely. In fact, he’s been dribbled past just 0.3 times per 90 this season.

As shown by the clip above, he’s then looking for that next action, immediately reacting to any pressure he knows that he may find himself under. He’s always thinking about his next move, and this is what will set him apart from others in the league as he grows his game.

But already, Dan Nimick could claim to be one of the best in the division. His defensive duelling (65%) and aerial win rate (63%) are all well above average, and that dribbled past ratio of 0.33 is bettered by only a select few defenders in the league (one being Klaidi Cela).

So while Nimick is young and will grow his game with age, he’s shown signs in these early stages of the 2023 CPL season to be an incredibly composed and accomplished centre-back already, firmly understanding how and when to use his body to win duels and stop opposition attacks.

ATTACKING PRINCIPLES

Any centre-back in a possession-based side must be sound on the ball. Luckily for Patrice Gheisar, Dan Nimick’s confidence and awareness only continues into attacking phases. It might be too early to declare him to be a ‘Ball-Playing Centre-Half’, but his forward passing numbers are incredibly encouraging.

Nimick’s completed 81% of his forward passes this season, alongside 65% of his long passes according to SofaScore, which has him ranked 4th among defenders in the league. All part of that role on the right side of Halifax’s back-three, Nimick makes himself an important progressor both through his precision passing and his willingness to carry the ball up the field.

Never panicking under pressure, Nimick smoothly perceives spaces to dribble his way out of trouble, and carry the ball forward through that same speed he possesses in defensive phases. This is a dangerous combination, considering the fear he already strikes through physicality alone.

It’s the kind of trait that makes John Stones such an imposing carrier of the ball. If Nimick can continue to develop an understanding for when to burst into the attack and continue to develop his confidence on the ball, he’ll be an absolutely magnificent player to have in attacking phases.

Perhaps most encouragingly of all, Nimick has quite the technique when striking a switch of play from one side of the field to the other. He pulled off a number of fantastic switches in the team’s latest encounter against Forge FC, even securing himself a stunning assist that had Rezart Rama gasping for air.

When you combine all of these assets together, it’s a bit of a mystery why an MLS club like Vancouver didn’t end up with Nimick in 2023. He’s already at the level required to perform for one of the echelon of clubs in North America. But for now, the 22-year-old is staking his claim as one of the best defenders in the Canadian Premier League, playing a massive part in Halifax’s improvements this season.

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