Before training camp started last September, the generally accepted idea was that Filip Hronek would be the young defenseman to make the Detroit Red Wings.
Although Hronek did make the team, it was due to the crazy number of injuries to Detroit's veteran defensemen and not to what Hronek had displayed during camp.
Dennis Cholowski, who got a head start after playing well in the Prospect Tournament and carrying that over to the preseason, was the youngster who earned the regular spot on the blue line.
During the preseason, Hronek said he didn't feel all that comfortable and it led to a bit of a slow start for him.
He played in the team's first six games, then was a healthy scratch for a few games before being sent down to the AHL's Grand Rapids Griffins on Oct. 23.
Hronek, who made the 2018 AHL All-Rookie Team, quickly adjusted to being back in a familiar place, and started producing points as he had the previous season.
The Wings brought Hronek back up Dec. 14 and then returned him to the Griffins during the Wings' All-Star break and bye so he could continue playing.
Once the Wings called Hronek up Feb. 16, it was to stay.
After the regular season, Hronek went to Slovakia to play for Team Czech Republic in the IIHF World Championship for the second straight year and had a very strong performance.
It is highly likely that Hronek's time in the AHL is over and he will be with the Red Wings for the entire 2019-20 season.
1 -- It was a season of firsts for Hronek as he made his NHL debut on opening night, Oct. 4, against the Columbus Blue Jackets. A week later, Hronek registered his first NHL point with an assist on Dylan Larkin's third-period goal at home against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Oct. 11. Hronek's first NHL goal also came quickly as he scored on the power play 21 seconds into the third period on Oct. 13 in Boston. Tyler Bertuzzi and Gustav Nyquist picked up the assists. It was the fastest goal at the start of the period for any Red Wings player in 2018-19.
46 -- Hronek played 46 games for the Wings this past season. That turned out to be more than Mike Green, who was limited to 43 games due to illness, and Trevor Daley, who played in just 44 because of injuries.
23 -- Hronek led all Detroit rookies in points with 23.
5 -- Hronek had five goals among his 23 points, tied with Green and Danny DeKeyser for the team lead in that category among defensemen.
18 -- With 18 assists, Hronek ranked third on the team among defensemen. Niklas Kronwall led with 24 assists in 79 games. Green had 21 assists in 43 games.
19:58 -- The 21-year-old blueliner was fifth on the Wings in average ice time at 19:58. Only DeKeyser at 21:58, Larkin at 21:51, Green at 21:41 and Nick Jensen at 20:48 averaged more.
30 -- Although he played just 46 games, Hronek was eighth on the team in penalty minutes with 30. Larkin led the team with 75 penalty minutes in 76 games. Forward Anthony Mantha also had 30 penalty minutes but in 67 games.
4 -- Hronek had a very strong finishing kick to end the regular season with points in each of his final four games. He had one goal and four assists in that span. He became the first Red Wings rookie defenseman to have a four-game point streak since 1991-92 when both Nick Lidstrom (five games from Jan. 31-Feb. 7, 1992) and Vladimir Konstantinov (four games from Feb. 12-20, 1992) accomplished the feat.
8 -- While with the Griffins, Hronek tied a Grand Rapids record with an eight-game assist streak from Nov. 23-Dec. 7. During the streak, Hronek had four multi-point games.
11 -- At the IIHF World Championship, Hronek led all defensemen in the tournament with 11 points and was named the championship's top defenseman. He had three goals and 11 assists in 10 games. The next-closest defenseman in points was Team Sweden's Oliver Ekman-Larsson with eight points in eight games.
