Detroit Red Wings: Jake Chelios makes long overdue NHL debut
By Tyler Samson
At 28 years old, defenseman Jake Chelios made his NHL debut on March 29th with Detroit Red Wings against the New Jersey Devils.
Defenseman Jake Chelios made his NHL debut with the Detroit Red Wings on March 29th against the New Jersey Devils. In his debut, he recorded a plus-minus rating of +1, had one shot on goal and clocked 17:11 minutes of ice time.
The product of Michigan State University has been playing professionally since the 2013-14 season. However, he has only played in the ECHL and AHL, never before cracking the NHL before the 29th. Since being signed as an undrafted free agent in 2013, Chelios spent the beginning part of his career with the Toledo Walleye in the ECHL, playing alongside his brother Dean.
More from Detroit Red Wings
- Detroit Red Wings 2023 Rookie Camp Has Plenty of Ups and Downs
- Red Wings’ Ville Husso looks to rebound in 2023-24 season
- Detroit Red Wings’ Moritz Seider is in search of a big contract
- 3 teams that should acquire Carter Hart from the Philadelphia Flyers
- Detroit Red Wings: 3 players flying under the radar right now
After playing with the Walleye for less than a season, he was called up to play with the Chicago Wolves in the AHL, where he played for two seasons.
After playing for the Wolves in the AHL and the Kalamazoo K-Wings in the ECHL for the St. Louis Blues’ organization, Chelios signed a free agent deal with the Carolina Hurricanes for the 2015-16 season.
Chelios was a member of the Hurricanes’ organization from the 2015-16 to the 2017-18 season. Although he never played for the Hurricanes in the NHL, he established himself as a quality defenseman for the Charlotte Checkers in the AHL.
In the 2018 offseason, Chelios signed with the Detroit Red Wings. His father Chris Chelios played for them. Jake was signed to a one year, two way deal. In the 2018-19 season so far, he has been a decent player for the Griffins in the AHL posting one goal and 13 assists in 59 games played.
Next. Each NHL Team's Greatest Player of All-Time. dark
With the Red Wings playoff hopes over, they have been giving minor league players NHL experience by calling them up to play the final handful of games left this season. Although Chelios’ stay in the NHL with the Red Wings may be short lived, it was awesome to see him finally play a game in the NHL at 28-years-old. For fans, it had to be refreshing to see another Chelios in a Detroit Red Wings uniform.