New Wings: Dennis Cholowski
By Cameron Kuom
5 years agoDennis Cholowski has grown so much ever since Detroit selected in the first round of the 2016 NHL entry draft. He will forever be unfairly linked to Arizona Coyotes defensemen Jakob Chychrun due to the Pavel Datsyuk trade, but he has made quite the name for himself, surprising many by making the Red Wings out of camp.
If this isn’t the literal definition of “You vs the guy she told you not to worry about” I don’t know what is.
Cholowski will now be joining a defensive corps in desperate need of a youth movement, but his job is far from safe. He’ll need to come in and prove his preseason performance was no fluke. As of now, the smooth skating blue-liner gives fans something to cheer about as he is set to embark on a hopefully long career in the winged wheel.
From the Scouts
“Cholowski took some big steps this season, being one of the better defensemen in the WHL. He’s an excellent skater who can transport pucks up the ice due to his skating and stay with the quickest forwards on defense. He has fine stick skills but I wouldn’t characterize him as a high-end offensive guy. Rather he gets a clean zone exit but he won’t be the primary guy to carry it up on the rush. He’s intelligent with the puck though and can make good distributions. Defensively I saw improvements in his game. I’d like to see him lean on guys a little more, but he makes fine defensive reads.”
“Cholowski continues to develop at a nice pace as a two-way defender with very good skating and playmaking skills. He can run a power play, has good mobility and transitions the puck well out of the defensive zone. Most recently a point-a-game player at the junior level, Cholowski will soon begin his career as a professional at the AHL level and compete with a number of good Red Wings defensive prospects. Cholowski still projects as a top-four NHL defenceman with offensive upside.”
Highlights
Cholowski displayed great poise as he rushed the puck up ice and eventually slip one to a streaking Gustav Nyquist, leading to a breakaway goal. Against a Maple Leafs team that was playing all regulars, this was certainly his shining moment of the preseason.
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A few of Cholowski’s goals for the Prince George Cougars last season for your viewing pleasure. Also featuring his heroic game tying goal at the buzzer against the Vancouver Giants.
Past Stats
Via eliteprospects.com
After two strong years in the BCHL, Cholowski attended St. Cloud State University where doubts about the pick started to come up. He struggled mightily against tougher competition, as he was just not physically ready to take on the challenge.
The following season Cholowski switched gears and took his talents to the WHL where he could play a more NHL-like schedule. That proved to be massive for his development, as he showed much more confidence with the puck to go along with his physicality maturing. Split between two teams he recorded 67 points in 69 games, and he also added 7 points in 12 games.
Role in the Lineup
Cholowski’s spot on the roster isn’t set and stone. There are still other young defensemen banging on the door to take his spot. To start the year he may see a workload of minutes due to some regulars being out with an injury. In the preseason he got some power-play time as well, which could indicate his future as a power-play quarterback this season.
Long-term, the hope is he’ll develop into a well-rounded top-4 defenseman that can skate and transport the puck quite well.
His potential can go as far as he wants it to. We may not want to get ahead of ourselves with his projections, but the player once dubbed a “project” has continued to prove people wrong time and time again.
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