BUFFALO, NY -- Before this past season, Dennis Cholowski wasn't among the players projected to go in the first round of the NHL Entry Draft.
But the Detroit Red Wings made a draft-day trade with the Arizona Coyotes, sending Pavel Datsyuk's cap space and the No. 16 pick for Arizona's No. 20, No. 53 (second round) and forward Joe Vitale.
Cholowski was still on the board when the 20th pick came up and the Wings didn't hesitate to take him.
"We had trade-back options at 20 as well," said Tyler Wright, the Wings' director of amateur scouting.