Helene St. James | Detroit Free Press

Helene St. James, Detroit Free Press

NEW YORK — He is a rink rat and a mall rat, a guy who rarely loses his poise unless there’s a pair of sneakers at stake.

Near the midpoint of the season, Detroit Red Wings rookie defenseman Dennis Cholowski stands out for his contributions. He made the team in his first year of pro hockey, two years after being drafted, yet plays with a calmness that usually comes only with experience. He runs one of their power plays, and is used in key situations, such as late in a tight game.

It’s quite a compliment to a player who is only 20, and Cholowski is handling the challenge with a desire for self-improvement.

Dennis Cholowski

“I’m put in different situations and whether it be 5-on-5, penalty kill or power play, I’m getting a feel for the game,” Cholowski said. “It’s different from what I’ve played before, but I’m starting to get the hang of it.”

The Wings were so banged up on the blue line when the season began they had to use four rookies, but Cholowski made the opening night roster on his own merit. He used the exhibition season to claim a job, showing off assets that include skating, shooting and passing.

“He’s such a smooth skater, you can see it’s very effortless,” veteran forward Frans Nielsen said. “He’s a great skater, the way he can walk the blue line. Rarely does his shot get blocked out there, he always gets it through to the net. He’s been impressive.”

Entering Saturday, Cholowski was second among Wings defensemen with 13 points, and led the team in average power play time at 2:18. He averaged 19:06 of ice time per game, though that could grow as Mike Green is out until January with a lower-body injury.

Much of the focus as the Wings rebuild has been on the cadre of talented forwards who are being counted on to help the team regain competitiveness: from Dylan Larkin being drafted 15th overall in 2014, to Michael Rasmussen ninth in 2017, and Filip Zadina sixth in 2018. The defense prospects didn’t have the same cachet, and had Zadina not been available when the Wings made their first selection this past June, they’d have picked defenseman Evan Boucher.

Instead they made their first defensive selection at 36th, in Jared McIsaac. He just made the roster for the Team Canada squad that will play at the 2019 World Juniors.

Cholowski, whom the Wings drafted at 20th in 2016, seems to be accelerating the rebuild. He already has a high hockey IQ — when he gets the puck, there’s no rush to get rid of it; rather, Cholowski will hang onto it and make the smart play. He plays with his head up, always aware of where teammates are and how to get the puck to them.

It bears repeating that this is his first real season pro hockey: he played one game with the Grand Rapids Griffins in 2016-17 after playing at St. Cloud State, and another in the playoffs last spring after 69 games in the Western Hockey League.

He jumped from juniors to the NHL, and part of the reason for the rapid transition is the three months he spent last summer in Detroit working out under the direction of Wings trainers.

“It got me in the best shape of my life,” Cholowski said. “They were watching us all the time, the guys that were here — it was big for me being in the gym every day, five days a week. It definitely helped me get stronger and more conditioned for this season.”

Cholowski is quick to credit how much the veteran defensemen on the team have helped — his locker at Little Caesars Arena is between Green’s and Niklas Kronwall’s.

Away from the rink, Cholowski relaxes like the teenager he so recently was.

“I do quite a bit of shoe shopping,” he said. “I like going to the mall, watching movies. I just saw ‘Creed 2,’ — it was really good.”

Raj Mehta, USA TODAY Sports

About the shoe shopping: this is where he may lack his typical poise. Cholowski estimates he has around 25 pairs of sneakers, some costing upwards of $500.

Which would he save were his place on fire?

Cholowski laughed. “Oh that’s such a tough question. I can’t pick one. I’d just gather up as many as I could.”

In an NHL season that features such notable rookie defensemen as Rasmus Dahlin, Miro Heiskanen and Henri Jokiharju — all first-round picks — Cholowski is second among rookie d-men with five goals and third with 13 points.

“All of us, myself included, have to remember how hard it is to be a defenseman at 20,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “We talk about this being a young league, but it’s really not a young defensemen league, and it’s really not a young goalie league. It’s a young forward league.

“So the fact Cholo’s done as well as he has at 20 years old is great.”

Dennis Cholowski

It’s worth emphasizing that Blashill puts Cholowski on the ice late in tight games. That doesn’t happen unless a coach has trust in a player.

“Why do I put him in those spots? I think he’s been really good offensively,” Blashill said. “He’s got really good poise, he’s got a real good brain, and he has no fear factor whatsoever, which is a good thing offensively. He doesn’t seize up in the moment, he’s able to stay cool under pressure. And he’s got a dynamic stick to him, where he can really shoot it, so he’s been real good in those areas.

“The other side of it is he just has to keep getting better defensively. It’s one thing to get beat, it’s another thing to make poor reads and that’s an area he can correct for sure. I don’t want him to be a good offensive defenseman, I want him to be a great defenseman, and that means creating more chances than you give up.”