Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Dennis Cholowski

Minor Transactions: 02/03/20

at CDT | by 3 Comments

Ten games grace the NHL schedule this evening, including a couple of potential playoff previews. The Boston Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning will battle once again as they look to represent the Atlantic Division, while the Edmonton Oilers and Dallas Stars face off in a war of two teams that believe they’re contenders in the west. With just a month left, every game is important for those with Stanley Cup aspirations. As always, we’ll keep track of all the minor moves right here.

  • The Detroit Red Wings have sent Dennis Cholowski back to the minor leagues, after he played just 12 minutes last night. The 21-year old could be back up by the end of the week, as the Red Wings don’t play again until Friday evening. The Grand Rapids Griffins meanwhile play in San Antonio tonight.
  • Jake Oettinger has been recalled by the Dallas Stars under emergency conditions with Ben Bishop dealing with a minor injury. The 21-year old netminder has never previously been recalled, and has played the entire season in the minor leagues posting a 12-16-4 record with a .912 save percentage.
  • Anthony Angello has been recalled by the Pittsburgh Penguins under emergency conditions, giving them another body for their game against the Ottawa Senators. The 23-year old has played seven NHL games this season.
  • The Vancouver Canucks have recalled Guillaume Brisebois and Jalen Chatfield under emergency conditions, while assigning Justin Bailey to the minor leagues. The Canucks are back home tomorrow to welcome in the Arizona Coyotes for the first of a five-game home stand.
  • Chris Driedger is back with the Florida Panthers after his recent conditioning stint in the minor leagues. The 25-year old goaltender has actually been outstanding in his limited NHL appearances, posting a .932 save percentage on the year.

Minor Transactions: 02/08/20

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

There are a dozen games on the docket today, with start times spanning over eight hours. The action begins with a pair of matinees featuring Western Conference teams in desperate need of points to stay relevant, the Winnipeg Jets and Arizona Coyotes. The night will be capped off with the Carolina Hurricanes facing the Vegas Golden Knights. If the playoffs started today, Vegas would not only be in but would avoid a wild card berth despite having the 16th-best record in the NHL, while Carolina would be on the outside looking in with the 12th-best record. Every game counts at this time of year, especially as time ticks down on the trade deadline with a number of teams trying to decide if they will be buyers or sellers. Every roster move matters as well, and there should be a number of them given the heavy slate of action this weekend. Keep up with all those transactions right here:

  • The Washington Capitals have recalled rookie defenseman Martin Fehervary from the AHL, the team announced. Fehervary is expected to draw into the lineup immediately tonight in place of Nick Jensen. Fehervary, 20, has only played in four games with the Washington Capitals this year but has played meaningful minutes in each appearance. In 45 games with the Hershey Bears this season, Fehervary has 14 points, among the leaders in first-year defensemen in the AHL.
  • Following back-to-back games over the past two nights, the Buffalo Sabres are one of just seven teams with Saturday night off. They have used the occasion to reassign youngsters Rasmus Asplund and Lawrence Pilut to the AHL’s Rochester Americans, the team announced. Pilut has been held scoreless through ten games with Buffalo this season but has 22 points in 30 games with Rochester. Asplund has featured more prominently with the Sabres, albeit recording only three points in 29 games, but has eight points in 18 AHL games as well.
  • The Montreal Canadiens announced that they have assigned Ryan Poehling to Laval of the AHL.  After recording a hat-trick in his NHL debut last season, he has struggled offensively this season, recording just one goal and one assist in 27 games.  Montreal has had several players dealing with the flu in recent days – including Poehling himself – so this move is a sign that some players are starting to get healthier.
  • The Vegas Golden Knights have assigned Cody Glass to AHL Chicago per a team release.  The rookie last played on January 4th and has been out with a lower-body injury since then.  It’s not a conditioning stint but he’ll get a chance to log some big minutes with the Wolves and play in more offensive-oriented situations than he has in Vegas.  Through 37 NHL games this season, the 20-year-old has five goals and seven assists.
  • The Detroit Red Wings announced they have assigned defenseman Dennis Cholowski back to the Grand Rapids Griffins of the AHL. The team’s 2016 first-rounder has split his sophomore season between the Red Wings and the Griffins. He has two goals and eight points in 33 games with Detroit, while scoring two goals and seven points in 19 games with the Griffins.

Minor Transactions: 01/30/20

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The hockey world got what it was waiting for last night when Zack Kassian and Matthew Tkachuk finally dropped the gloves in what was a fiery edition of the battle of Alberta. While many gave the decision to the bigger Edmonton Oilers forward, the same can’t be said for the outcome of the game. The Oilers were defeated in a shootout by the Calgary Flames and are now two points behind their provincial rivals in the standings. As always, we’ll keep track of all the minor moves around the league today as teams prepare for their own battles this evening:

  • The Boston Bruins have recalled Karson Kuhlman and Jeremy Lauzon from the AHL, as they prepare to return to action after ten days off. The Bruins are on a two-game road trip that will stop in Winnipeg and Minnesota on back-to-back nights, and need all the healthy bodies they can get.
  • The Jets made a pair of moves themselves as they prepare for Boston tomorrow night, recalling Cameron Schilling and Logan Shaw. The 31-year old Schilling still hasn’t played in an NHL game this season, but does have 20 points in 42 games for the Manitoba Moose.
  • The Florida Panthers have recalled both Riley Stillman and Sam Montembeault, as they get ready for an afternoon tilt on Saturday. Florida can potentially put a fork in division-rival Montreal with a win, putting them 12 points up in the standings.
  • Givani Smith, Filip Zadina and Dennis Cholowski have all been recalled as the youth movement continues for the Detroit Red Wings. All three players figure to be core pieces for the squad moving forward and will get a chance down the stretch to really establish themselves.
  • Connor Bunnaman and Alex Lyon have been recalled by the Philadelphia Flyers, who are still waiting on Carter Hart’s return from injury. The team will use Brian Elliott for the time being, but need their young star goaltender back as soon as possible.
  • After being taken along on the road with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Tyler Gaudet is on his way back to the AHL. Toronto gave Gaudet a chance to come with them when they visited Nashville, the organization that had him for parts of the last two seasons. He isn’t expected to see any NHL action for the Maple Leafs.
  • Chase De Leo is on the way back the San Diego Gulls, assigned today to the AHL. The 24-year old has played just a single game this season with the Anaheim Ducks, and just four in his career.
  • With Marc-Andre Fleury forced to miss a game after pulling out of the All-Star festivities, the Vegas Golden Knights have recalled Oskar Dansk. Nicolas Roy is coming with him with William Karlsson and Cody Glass still injured.

Minor Transactions: 01/23/20

at CDT | by 2 Comments

The last few teams have now packed up their things and headed out of town for the All-Star break, leaving behind some waiver-exempt players to head down to the minor leagues for another week. With NHL games suspended for the time being, several clubs will be using the AHL to keep their young prospects in action. As always, we’ll keep track of all the minor moves right here.

  • The Los Angeles Kings have sent Blake Lizotte to the minors for the first time in his short career. Lizotte was signed as an undrafted free agent out of the NCAA last season and has played in 45 games with the Kings this year. The 22-year old has four goals and 15 points in those games, after failing to register a point in his NHL debut at the end of the 2018-19 campaign.
  • Givani Smith, Filip Zadina, Dennis Cholowski and Calvin Pickard have all been sent to the minor leagues to continue their respective seasons. The Detroit Red Wings have recalled Kaden Fulcher from the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye in order to keep enough healthy goaltenders on the roster, but he isn’t expected to see any action. Fulcher actually made his NHL debut at the very end of last season, but has been limited to just two appearances in the minor leagues due to injury this year.
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets have sent Adam Clendening and Matiss Kivlenieks to the AHL over the break. Kivlenieks won his NHL debut just a few days ago by stopping 31 of 32 shots against the New York Rangers and could return after the break to back up Elvis Merzlikins until Joonas Korpisalo is back.
  • Nelson Nogier, Cameron Schilling and Kristian Vesalainen have all been sent to the Manitoba Moose, following the Winnipeg Jets’ final game before the break. The trio are all waiting for their first game in the NHL this season and could be called up when the Jets are back in action.

Minor Transactions: 01/22/20

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

With just two games remaining on the schedule before the entire league breaks for the All-Star Game festivities, there will be many minor moves today seeing players head down to the AHL. Anyone that isn’t tied down by waiver eligibility will be heading down to get some extra work during the break and save their NHL club a few cap dollars. As always, we’ll keep track of those moves right here.

  • The New York Rangers have sent down Igor Shesterkin and Phillip Di Giuseppe, though the former is still not expected to take part in the AHL All-Star event. Shesterkin was selected for the minor league game after going 15-4-3 with a .932 in his first taste of North American professional hockey, but was replaced earlier this week as he continued to play with the Rangers.
  • Nicolas Hague and Nicolas Roy have both been sent back to the AHL by the Vegas Golden Knights, a trip both of them got used to earlier in the season. While Roy has continued to bounce up and down between the two leagues, Hague has been in the NHL since the middle of November and playing regularly for the Golden Knights. The 21-year old defenseman has 11 points in 38 games.
  • The Chicago Blackhawks have returned Brandon Hagel and Dennis Gilbert to the AHL. Hagel still hasn’t suited up for an NHL game, but he’s obviously getting closer to that dream after several call-ups in recent days.
  • Andrew Agozzino, Joseph Blandisi, Sam Lafferty and Kevin Czuczman have all been assigned to the AHL by the Pittsburgh Penguins, allowing the NHL club to bank a little extra cap space as they continue to push for the playoffs. The Penguins have quite a bit of flexibility when it comes to deadline additions thanks to some savvy saving and the potential long-term injured reserve cap room created by Jake Guentzel’s injury.
  • The Penguins cross-state rival have also sent several players to the minors, as Alex Lyon, German Rubtsov and Connor Bunnaman are all leaving the Philadelphia Flyers for now. The Flyers don’t play again until January 31st, giving them a chance to sort out their roster in a week’s time.
  • Sebastian Aho, no not that Sebastian Aho, has been sent to the minor leagues by the New York Islanders. The young defenseman has been brought up a few times as injury insurance since Adam Pelech went down earlier this month, but still hasn’t found his way into an NHL game this season.
  • The Detroit Red Wings are one of the few teams in action today, and have recalled Dennis Cholowski ahead of their game against the Minnesota Wild. Cholowski has split his time between the NHL and AHL this season, suiting up 29 times for the Red Wings.
  • Karson Kuhlman, Jeremy Lauzon and Dan Vladar have all been returned to the AHL by the Boston Bruins. Lauzon, 22, scored the second NHL goal of his career last night for Boston, even while playing his off-side.
  • The Florida Panthers have returned Riley Stillman and Sam Montembeault to the minor leagues over the break. Stillman has played in 16 games with the Panthers this season, but is still looking for his first career NHL goal.

What Your Team Is Thankful For: Detroit Red Wings

at CDT | by 8 Comments

As the holiday season approaches, PHR will take a look at what teams are thankful for as the season heads past the one-quarter mark. There also might be a few things your team would like down the road. We’ll examine what’s gone well in the early going and what could improve as the season rolls on for the Detroit Red Wings.

What are the Red Wings most thankful for?

Very little has gone right for Detroit this season as the team finds itself dead last in the league, four points out of 30th place and nine points out of 29th place, suggesting the team is likely to land another significant lottery in June. And while none of that is worthy of being thankful for, Detroit’s general manager Steve Yzerman, is eager to complete the team’s rebuild and likely has no qualms about seeing this franchise at the bottom in hopes of completely rebuilding the franchise up. It has plenty of complementary pieces and several players who could be stars, but a picking up a franchise player in a stacked draft might be the most valuable piece to this franchise.

Who are the Red Wings most thankful for?

Anthony Mantha.

Mantha missed eight games with a knee injury, returning today, but continues to be the team’s leading scorer with 12 goals and 23 points this season, which puts him on pace for almost a goal per game. After posting 48 points for the past two seasons, Mantha looks ready for a potential breakout season if he can remain healthy. He is third on the team among forwards in TOI, averaging 18:54 and looks to have taken his game to another level this year.

Considering that Dylan Larkin has seen a slight decline in his play so far, the team should be thankful that Mantha continues to improve season after season.

What would the Red Wings be even more thankful for?

Defense.

Detroit has struggled defensively this season with injuries as the team has been without several of their veteran blueliners for chunks of the season already. Other than Filip Hronek, the defense has looked to be in serious trouble. Danny DeKeyser has missed all but eight games so far this season. Trevor Daley has missed 20 games, Mike Green has missed eight games and isn’t the same player he once was, while Jonathan Ericsson has been waived and used just eight times this season. Even Dennis Cholowski has failed to live up to expectations this year and has been sent to the AHL as well.

The team needs the defense to get healthy and more importantly, they need some of their young blueliners to take that next step and provide some defense to give the team a chance.

What should be on the Red Wings’ Holiday Wish List?

Goaltending.

The teams goaltending has hit some hard times. The star of the team is Jonathan Bernier, who is boasting a 3.34 GAA and a .890 save percentage in 20 appearances. And yes, that’s the best of the bunch. 35-year-old Jimmy Howard, who is currently out with a strained groin, is struggling even worse with a 3.94 GAA and a .887 save percentage in just eight appearances. The team did add Eric Comrie to the team in a trade with Arizona. However, so far there hasn’t been any indication that he’s the answer in two appearances, although it’s still early.

Unfortunately, the team may not find the answer during the holidays. They may be more likely to fix that problem by making a big splash in the free agent market this summer when some interesting names might be available, including Washington’s Braden Holtby, Jacob Markstrom, Robin Lehner amongst others.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Atlantic Notes: Ericsson, Balcers, Canadiens, Nordstrom

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Red Wings aren’t sure whether or not defenseman Jonathan Ericsson will be ready for the start of the regular season, notes Ted Kulfan of The Detroit News.  He’s dealing with a soft tissue injury sustained early in training camp and has already been ruled out of their final two preseason games.  That could pave the way for youngster Dennis Cholowski to break camp with Detroit but it would likely be on a short-term basis as he is waiver-exempt so having him as a reserve wouldn’t make too much sense from a development perspective.

More from the Atlantic Division:

  • Senators winger Rudolfs Balcers is out indefinitely due to a lower-body injury, reports Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch (Twitter link). The 22-year-old split last season between Ottawa and AHL Belleville and acquitted himself reasonably well with 14 points in 36 games.  He’s undergoing tests to determine the full extent of the injury but it certainly sounds as if he won’t be available when the regular season gets underway next week.
  • While the Canadiens were suggested as a team that had been pursuing other restricted free agents beyond Sebastian Aho this summer, GM Marc Bergevin indicated in an appearance on TSN 690 that Aho was the only one they tried to add via the offer sheet. The five-year contract they tendered was matched by Carolina and Montreal wound up only making minor tweaks to their roster this summer.  Bergevin also noted that goalie prospect Cayden Primeau has garnered some trade interest but the team has little interest in moving him.
  • Bruins winger Joakim Nordstrom is still working his way back from the broken foot he sustained in the Stanley Cup Final which means he may not be ready for the start of the season, notes NBC Sports Boston’s Joe Haggerty. As a result, the team may wait a little longer to announce their final cuts, especially with center David Krejci not fully healthy at the moment either.

Evening Notes: NHL Preseason Odds, Lites, Cholowski

at CDT | by 14 Comments

Oddsmakers have released preliminary odds for the 2019-20 NHL season with the Tampa Bay Lightning and Vegas Golden Knights at the lead as the two teams most likely to reach the Stanley Cup Finals next season, released by SuperbookUSA. The Tampa Bay Lightning are projected to lead the league again in points with 108.5, while Vegas is expected to lead the Western Conference with 103.5 points.

Here are the rest of the projections:

Anaheim Ducks – 80.5
Arizona Coyotes – 91.5
Boston Bruins – 100.5
Buffalo Sabres – 83.5
Calgary Flames – 96.5
Carolina Hurricanes – 94.5
Chicago Blackhawks – 90.5
Colorado Avalanche – 100.5
Columbus Blue Jackets – 82.5
Dallas Stars – 96.5
Detroit Red Wings – 76.5
Edmonton Oilers – 85.5
Florida Panthers – 96.5
Los Angeles Kings – 74.5
Minnesota Wild – 84.5
Montreal Canadiens – 89.5
Nashville Predators – 97.5
New Jersey Devils – 88.5
New York Islanders – 94.5
New York Rangers – 88.5
Ottawa Senators – 68.5
Philadelphia Flyers – 90.5
Pittsburgh Penguins – 95.5
San Jose Sharks – 94.5
St. Louis Blues – 96.5
Tampa Bay Lightning – 108.5
Toronto Maple Leafs – 102.5
Vancouver Canucks – 88.5
Vegas Golden Knights – 103.5
Washington Capitals – 97.5
Winnipeg Jets – 96.5

  • SportsDay’s Mathew DeFranks writes that despite comments made last season by Dallas Stars CEO Jim Lites about Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn, there was little consequence to that this offseason as the Stars were quite successful this offseason as they managed to sign Joe Pavelski, Corey Perry and Andrej Sekera. The scribe writes that in the end, free agents looked at three things when it comes to Dallas. First, they are Stanley Cup contenders. Second, they had plenty of cap space and finally, Dallas is a destination that many players prefer to live in, especially in the winter.
  • The Detroit Free Press’ Helene St. James writes that Detroit Red Wings defenseman Dennis Cholowski spoke at a hockey youth camp recently and stated that he is focused on fixing his defensive liabilities in hopes of returning to the Red Wings’ lineup next season. Cholowski looked like a franchise-changing defenseman early on but was eventually demoted to the Grand Rapids Griffins due to his lack of success on the defensive side of his game. The 21-year-old scored seven goals and 16 points in 52 games last season but also had a team-worst plus-minus at minus-20. “Having to go down to Grand Rapids was a disappointment a little bit; I guess it would be for anybody,” Cholowski said. “In order to play you have to be good defensively and then that generates the offense. So I’m working on the D-zone and hopefully I take those things I learned into camp this year.”

Detroit’s Trevor Daley Out Three To Five Weeks With Broken Foot

at CDT | by 4 Comments

The Detroit Red Wings dealt with numerous injuries at the start of the year, especially on defense. In fact, the team was initially forced to start the season with four rookies in their lineup. Those days could be returning for the Red Wings. Already without Mike Green and Danny DeKeyser, head coach Jeff Blashill revealed late Monday that defenseman Trevor Daley will be out for three to five weeks after breaking his foot in a pre-game skate, according to Helene St. James of the Detroit Free-Press.

“I didn’t think it was a big deal. Then it’s a big deal,” Blashill said after the Red Wings’ 4-3 shootout loss to the Florida Panthers.

The loss of Daley doesn’t help a team that is already missing quite a bit of veteran talent. Green has been out with a foot/ankle injury since Dec. 14, while DeKeyser has been out since Dec. 4 with a hand injury. Blashill said both players remain “weeks away.” While the 35-year-old Daley has seen his playing time drop this season, averaging just 18:59 on the ice, he remained a steady player on the ice. However, the team has really struggled with Green out of the lineup. The team is 13-8-2 with Green in the lineup and just 2-11-5 without him. The team will have to rely on some of their rookies more. While the team has gotten solid play from Dennis Cholowski and Filip Hronek this season, both have had their ups and downs all season, especially on the defensive end.

“Our record is reflective,” Blashill said. “When those guys have been out, we haven’t won enough games. Now what has to happen is guys that are here have to play great hockey. I’ve said that before — the amount that you miss guys depends on the level of which the players you have available play. We’ve got guys that I think have some better hockey in them that have to play great hockey. We have some young players in the lineup, they have to play great. We have some older players in the lineup, they have to play great.”

Blashill added that the team is unlikely to add a defenseman on Tuesday despite having a game on Wednesday against Calgary. Detroit has struggled in December, finishing 2018 with a 1-6-3 record in their last 10 games.

 

Atlantic Notes: Backes, Kotkaniemi, Cholowski

at CDT | by 3 Comments

A last minute scratch on Saturday has many people worrying that Boston Bruins forward David Backes might have a more serious problem when they look back to a hit that Backes took a shoulder to the head in Thursday’s game against Edmonton from defenseman Matt Benning in the first shift of the game. He was checked for a concussion and cleared to return, but only skated 6:28 during the game.

While the 34-year-old participated in Saturday’s morning skate, there are many concerned that Backes, who has suffered numerous concussions over the course of his career, has another, according to Matt Porter of The Boston Globe. Head coach Bruce Cassidy said he was “absolutely” worried about Backes.

“We’ll list it as an upper-body injury,” Cassidy said. “I think we all saw the hit. You want to be cautious, first of all. This is a player’s health, that left at the end of last year with a concussion.”

  • The Montreal Canadiens got a great game out of 18-year-old Jesperi Kotkaniemi despite losing to Ottawa Saturday. The third-overall pick in this year’s draft is starting to show his skills and while he only has three points in seven games so far, he is clearly making a positive impact on the Canadiens, according to The Athletic’s Marc Dumont (subscription required). Throw in the fact that Kotkaniemi has made fewer than a half dozen mistakes on the ice, Montreal has a big piece in place for the future.
  • Another player receiving quite a bit of praise is Detroit Red Wings defenseman Dennis Cholowski. The 20-year-old has received a big opportunity with injuries to Mike Green, Niklas Kronwall, Jonathan Ericsson and Danny DeKeyser, and has taken advantage of it, according to Detroit Free Press’ Helene St. James. The 2016 first-round pick has shown off smooth skating and on-ice intelligence and has shown an offensive instinct, posting two goals and five point in six minutes. Dylan Larkin believes that Cholowski is a big piece to their future. “His head is always up and he’s always there to make passes and get it in the forwards’ hands,” Larkin said of Cholowski. “He reminds me a lot of Zach Werenski in that sense, where their posture with the puck is almost if you’re forechecking him, you don’t know what he is going to do because he’s got his head up and his feet are moving. It’s awesome having him back there.”

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

scroll to top