Detroit Red Wings: Dennis Cholowski will be a late bloomer

The Detroit Red Wings have been playing a game of cat and mouse with defenseman Dennis Cholowski, and it seems he might just be a late bloomer.

The Detroit Red Wings have been tooling around with call-ups and send-downs to try and get things figured out for their future. Dennis Cholowski has been on the receiving end of this, being called up and sent down a couple of times this season. His lack of a breakthrough proves he may be a late bloomer for the Red Wings.

Cholowski is now twenty-two years old, and in his first two seasons with the Red Wings, he has produced lackluster performances. General Manager (GM) Steve Yzerman has tried to talk with Cholowski to help him make changes to his game to make him a better player at the NHL level. He was recently sent down to the Grand Rapids Griffins to work some kinks out, again.

Cholowski is an offensive defenseman who has simply not shown the ability to be one at the NHL level. He has made improvements with his game, but it just has not been making the biggest difference for him, still being sent down.

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In 2019-20, with the Red Wings, Cholowski had two goals and six assists for eight points while possessing a minus twenty-six rating, and a 47.7 Corsi For (CF%) rating through thirty-six games played.

Cholowski has played in thirty-games with the Griffins, where he has three goals and ten assists for thirteen points while holding a minus-fifteen rating. He is still currently stationed with the Griffins after his latest send down.

Cholowski’s offensive abilities are what made him an intriguing prospect, but they just seem to be unable to transfer to the NHL level at a high level.

The ugly plus/minus rating is something of concern that has been addressed by the organization during his stints in the minors.

The issue is, Cholowski has struggled to make the changes necessary to develop into a dependable NHL defenseman. It has taken far longer than anticipated, which just makes it seem like he may be a late bloomer. This raises a question, will Yzerman keep him around, or is he running out of time?

Cholowski, to some, may seem like a lost cause who cannot make the changes needed to be consistent NHL defenseman. However, Red Wings fans should remember Nick Jensen, who took quite some time to develop and become an impact defenseman at the NHL level.

This might be the case with Cholowski, but Yzerman may not want to wait this out and opt to roll with the younger defenseman who may be able to prove themselves quicker. If Cholowski can be more assertive with the puck, learning when to make better passes, being more poised, he could be a late bloomer.

Cholowski’s development path has been shaky, he may not be a part of the long haul, but he seems like he will be a late bloomer if Yzerman is okay with giving him more chances.

On a rebuilding team like the Detroit Red Wings, why not keep giving him chances to prove himself and succeed?