Off the heels of a big 5-1 win to open up the season, the Washington Capitals went to the waiver wire and claimed defenseman Dennis Cholowski. He will be a depth defenseman. The team also loaned forward Beck Malenstyn to the Hershey Bears. Malenstyn will not require waivers.
Cholowski will reunite with his old Seattle Kraken teammate Vitek Vanecek. The 23 year old was selected by the Kraken in the Expansion Draft from the Detroit Red Wings. Cholowski was selected by the Red Wings at 20th overall in the first round of the 2016 NHL Draft.
The six foot two, 197 pound defenseman appeared in 16 games for Detroit last season recording three points with a goal and two assists. In 104 career games with Detroit, the Langley, British Columbia, native recorded 27 points with 10 goals and 17 assists.
In 69 career games in the AHL with the Grant Rapids Griffins, Cholowski had 35 points with six goals and 29 assists including 10 points in 13 games last season with three goals and seven assists.
Malenstyn heads to Hershey and doesn’t need to clear waivers. The 23 year old missed the 2020-21 season due to jury. In 120 career games with the Hershey Bears, the six foot three, 200 pound forward has recorded 31 points with 14 goals and 17 assists.
While with the Kraken, he signed a one year, two way deal back in September but then was designated as an injured non roster before being sent to waivers on Wednesday. He’s a left handed defenseman who can skate strong and carry the puck. He can join the rush and make an impact on both ends of the ice.
It’s another defensemen for the Caps to keep themselves stocked on the blueline. Chowlowski was also teammates with Anthony Mantha while he was with the Red Wings. It is unknown how much he’ll play if he’ll even play at all, but more names on defense is a good thing for the Caps.