DETROIT - The Detroit Red Wings today assigned right wings Givani Smith and Filip Zadina, defenseman
Dennis Cholowski
and goaltender
Calvin Pickard
to the American Hockey League's Grand Rapids Griffins. Additionally, the Red Wings recalled goaltender
Kaden Fulcher
from the ECHL's Toledo Walleye under emergency conditions.
Red Wings send four to Griffins
Detroit to resume play with home-and-home set against NY Rangers on Jan. 31-Feb. 1
Smith has appeared in 15 games with Detroit this season, picking up his first three NHL points (2-1-3) since his most recent recall on Dec. 31. The 21-year-old logged his first NHL assist and point on Jan. 7 vs. Montreal before scoring twice in a four-game span on Jan. 14 at NY Islanders and Jan. 20 at Colorado. Smith has also logged five penalty minutes, 19 shots on goal and 32 hits in 10:19 average time on ice. A second-year pro, Smith has matched his AHL rookie-season totals with 13 points (4-9-13) in 22 games for the Griffins after posting 13 points (6-7-13) over 64 games during the 2018-19 campaign. The former second-round pick (46th overall) of Detroit in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, Smith tallied 135 points (73-62-135) and 411 penalty minutes in 236 Ontario Hockey League games with the Barrie Colts, Guelph Storm and Kitchener Rangers from 2014-18 prior to turning professional.
Zadina, 20, recorded his first NHL two-goal game in last night's loss against the Minnesota Wild, bringing his NHL totals this season to 15 points (8-7-15) in 26 games. He is tied for second among NHL rookies in goals since Jan. 1, and dating back to his original recall on Nov. 24, Zadina leads Detroit in goals and is tied for second in points. Zadina has played parts of two seasons with the Red Wings, totaling 18 points (9-9-18) in 35 NHL games. The former sixth-overall pick from the 2018 NHL Entry Draft has also skated in 20 AHL games with Grand Rapids this season, notching 13 points (7-6-13). In 79 games with the Griffins since 2018-19, the 6-foot, 190-pound winger owns 48 points (23-25-48) and 26 penalty minutes. The Pardubice, Czech Republic, native spent one season in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League before turning pro, racking up 82 points (44-38-82) in 57 games with the Halifax Mooseheads in 2017-18.
Cholowski, 21, has split his second professional campaign between the Red Wings and Griffins, showing eight points (2-6-8) and four penalty minutes in 30 games with the Red Wings. He also has five points (1-4-5) on the power play to rank second among the team's defensemen, in addition to his first overtime-winning goal in the NHL (Nov. 12 at Anaheim). After joining the Griffins last month, Cholowski notched five points (2-3-5) in 17 contests, including goals in two of his last four games with the team. Dating back to his pro debut at the end of the 2016-17 campaign, Cholowski has 17 points (2-15-17) and 14 penalty minutes in 43 regular-season games with the Griffins and two points (0-2-2) and two penalty minutes in six Calder Cup Playoff games. In his two NHL seasons, the 6-foot-2, 197-pound defenseman has recorded 24 points (9-15-24) and 20 penalty minutes in 82 games with the Red Wings.
Pickard has made 24 appearances for Grand Rapids this season and owns a 13-8-3 record, 2.90 goals-against average, 0.902 save percentage and two shutouts. Pickard has won five of his last six appearances with the Griffins dating back to Dec. 11, resulting in honors as AHL Player of the Week on Jan. 13 after he was recalled to Detroit the day prior. Pickard, 27, made his Red Wings debut on Nov. 29 at Philadelphia, which marked the first of his three NHL appearances this season. Over parts of six NHL seasons, Pickard has a 32-52-9 record, 3.00 goal-against average, 0.905 save percentage and four shutouts with the Colorado Avalanche, Toronto Maple Leafs, Flyers, Arizona Coyotes and Red Wings. He has also appeared in 224 career AHL games since 2011-12 with the Lake Erie Monsters, San Antonio Rampage, Toronto Marlies, Tucson Roadrunners and Griffins, posting a 106-79-18 record, 2.64 goals-against average, 0.913 save percentage and 14 shutouts. Pickard also won a 2018 Calder Cup championship with Toronto.
Fulcher, 21, has been limited to two games for the Walleye this season due to injury and has appeared in 30 games with the team over his two professional campaigns, showing a 15-9-6 record, 3.17 goals-against average, 0.894 save percentage and one shutout. Fulcher was also one of an NHL-high 10 players to make his NHL debut for the Red Wings during the 2018-19 season after entering the team's season finale in relief on April 6, 2019 vs. Buffalo to make nine saves on 11 shots. Originally signed by the Red Wings as an undrafted free agent on Oct. 3, 2017, Fulcher was a 2018 Ontario Hockey League champion with the Hamilton Bulldogs and posted a 57-44-13 record, 3.19 goals-against average, 0.893 save percentage and five shutouts in 115 OHL games from 2015-18.
