Winterhawks Eliminated, Cholowski to Grand Rapids

The logjam on the Griffins’ blueline becomes bigger with the elimination of the Portland Winterhawks from the WHL Playoffs.

As reported by Helene St. James, Dennis Cholowski will be coming to Grand Rapids to contribute to the Griffins’ (hopefully) long playoff run.

Spending his 2016-17 season with St. Cloud State, this was Cholowski’s first season in the WHL, and he had a pretty successful one.

Traded before the WHL Trade Deadline, Cholowski started the season with the Prince George Cougars and was then added to this strong Portland Winterhawks team.

In total, Cholowski finished the regular season with 15 goals and 66 points in 69 games – a solid season for a defenseman two years removed from his draft year.

Now with the Griffins, he will hopefully get a taste of professional hockey as he is eligible to start in Grand Rapids for the 2018-19 season.

The left-handed defenseman will have plenty of competition to get a spot in this lineup – Joe Hicketts, Brian Lashoff, Dan Renouf and the new addition of Libor Sulak, all shoot left as well. Hicketts is able to play on the right side and has been for most of this season – including his short stint up with the Red Wings.

Cholowski has been rumored to have a decent shot up with the big club as early as next season, as reported by Craig Custance of The Athletic.

As one of the Red Wings top defensive prospects, Cholowski will have to be a player to watch in this playoff run. Let’s hope it’s a long one!

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