Dennis Cholowski beats out Samuel Bolduc as NY Islanders 7th defenseman

The biggest surprise move of training camp was no doubt Pierre Engvall being placed on waivers, but that wasn't the only surprise Lou Lamoriello had before final rosters were due at 5 pm yesterday as opening night is only two days away.

Samuel Bolduc, who served as the teams seventh defenseman last season, was also placed on waivers in favor of Dennis Cholowski who'll be the first blue line option off the bench for the Islanders.

Cholowski joined the Islanders before the 2022-23 season, signing a two-year, two-way deal. He appeared in only two games with the Islanders, both coming in January of 2023, failing to register a point and averaging around 12 minutes a game.

Cholowski edges out Bolduc

Last year, in 68 games with the Bridgeport Islanders, Cholowski led all B-Islanders blue liners, scoring seven goals in 24 games. His efforts saw him earn another two-way deal for one year, signing the contract in July.

Now officially part of the Islanders' opening night roster, Cholowski will be expected to bring another element of offense to the Islanders defensive corps whenever he's called upon. The Detroit Red Wings saw that offensive capability in him when they elected to draft him 20th overall in the 2016 NHL Draft from the Chilliwack Chiefs of the BCHL.

Only 26 years old, Cholowski still has time to turn his NHL career around and become a serviceable defenseman. Defensemen typically take longer to develop than forwards so there's a hope he'll be a late bloomer and become an affordable option on the Islanders' blue line.