Quoting: Stan_Bowman
I mean sure, but what is wrong with Cholowski that you are selling him off so quickly?
Horcoff:
“I think it’s fair to say that the area he needs to focus on is his defensive play – the physicality, just the overall intensity it takes to defend in the NHL,” Wings director of player personnel Shawn Horcoff said. “I think he is a young player that has survived on offense his whole life, and now when he is playing, he gets exposed a little bit on that side of the rink. Having said that, we have made it abundantly clear to him, and he’s aware of it and he’s working on it. And down in Grand Rapids, we had seen some growth in that area from him. So he’s working on it and he’s getting better.”
Cholo:
“I’ve had to deal with that my whole career, basically just learning to attack more and be more aggressive and assertive,” Cholowski said. “I’m not generally the most assertive guy off the ice, but I’ve had to learn to bring up that other side of my game and it’s coming along well. When I was younger it was tougher. But I’m a little older and more experienced now, and you have to go and fight your job.”
My take:
One of the other things “wrong” I feel is his draft pedigree, and the high expectations that come being picked 20th, so fans are restless as they expected him to be a contributor by now. But sometimes it just takes guys longer, especially dmen. And while he may never turn into a top pair guy, Cholowski still has NHL skills (skating, size, can run PP, good pick mover) and a good chance at being a quality NHL player. In retrospect, he would have greatly benefited by marinating longer in the NCAA’s where he attended St. Cloud State so he could continue to mature as a player and person, instead of on the fly at the AHL and NHL level. I think if not for his draft pedigree, we may have let that happen. The upcoming year will be massive for Cholo (to say the least), to show what progress he has made.