Jake Paterson's final year as an amateur hockey player has prepared him well for his first pro season in the Detroit Red Wings organization.

• Paterson was the No. 1 goaltender for the OHL's Saginaw Spirit, appearing in 45 of the club's 68 regular-season games.

• He played in the World Junior Championship, hitting the ice in two games as Canada reached the bronze medal game before losing to Russia.

• And he spent a month with the Grand Rapids Griffins of the AHL after Saginaw was eliminated from the playoffs.

Now, with all that behind him, Paterson is preparing to play in the Red Wings prospects tournament before reporting to training camp next week. Both are at Centre ICE Arena in Traverse City.

"Last season was a pretty good year," said Paterson, the Red Wings' third-round pick (80th overall) in the 2012 NHL draft. "We had a pretty young team so it started off a little bit slow but we came together as a group. Overall, I thought it was a pretty successful season.

"World Juniors were good. You're playing against the best in the world and the best in Canada. It was a cool experience just to see the best players from across the country."

At the World Juniors in Sweden, Paterson had a 1-1 record, 3.36 goals-against average and .867 save percentage. Both of his appearances came during the preliminary round.

He made 22 saves when Canada opened the tournament with a 7-2 victory over Germany and stopped 24 shots in a 5-4 overtime loss to the Czech Republic before Montreal Canadiens prospect Zachary Fucale of the Halifax Mooseheads played the final five games.

With Saginaw, Paterson had a 24-18-2 record, 3.41 GAA and .906 save percentage for a team that finished sixth in the OHL's Western Conference with a 33-30-5 record.

"We didn't get the results we were looking for," said Paterson, 20. "But overall it was a pretty good experience and heading overseas was good for my career."

Paterson, who was the No. 1 goalie in Saginaw the past three years, had a 70-54-10 record, 3.43 GAA and .904 save percentage during four seasons with the Spirit.

He also appeared in 21 playoff games, helping the Spirit reach the second round in 2012 before being drafted by the Red Wings, who liked his athleticism and calm demeanor when they made him the ninth goalie selected that year.

Paterson is pleased with the way his all-around game progressed last season and feels ready to take the next step in his career.

"Everything is probably just a little bit better," he said. "My skating has gotten better. I don't see any overall jumps in any category but I think overall it's developed a little bit. Especially with goaltending, it takes time to develop your game. From last year to this year, the game is coming.

"I don't think there's any one area of my game that needs too much changing. Going up to the pro game is a big jump. Just try and develop all areas of your game. I'm looking forward to that challenge."

At the prospects tournament beginning Friday vs. the St. Louis Blues, Paterson and Jared Coreau – a Northern Michigan product who spent most of last season in Toledo of the ECHL – are expected to get most of the playing time in goal for the Red Wings.

Both will likely start the season in Toledo given that Petr Mrazek and Tom McCollum are ahead of them on the organization's depth chart and the Red Wings are set at the NHL level with Jimmy Howard and Jonas Gustavsson.

Mrazek, who led Grand Rapids to the 2013 Calder Cup and played nine games in Detroit last season, will be the Griffins No. 1 netminder and McCollum – a former first-round draft pick – is coming off two strong seasons after struggling with consistency during his first three years as a pro.

Paterson finished last season alongside Mrazek and McCollum after signing an amateur tryout with the Griffins. Although he didn't appear in any games, he spent about a month in Grand Rapids and that experience was valuable.

"You see what it takes to become a pro," he said. "I see all the little things guys are doing. It's definitely good to see what it's like and what you have to do to play at the next level."

Paterson isn't putting too much thought into where the Red Wings send him after training camp.

"It's all out of your control," he said. "Where ever they tell you to go, you're going to go there, try to play your best and take it from there. Just play the best I can.

"You just go there with the right mindset, work as hard as you can and develop your game as best as possible."

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