Arya News - The Edmonton Oilers got their man.
Jake Walman. (Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images)
The Edmonton Oilers got their man.
For the past six months, it"s been an open secret around the NHL that the Oilers were looking for an impact defenseman. In the past six weeks, it"s become clear that they need more scoring. With their midnight acquisition of Jake Walman from the San Jose Sharks , the Oilers have neatly addressed both needs with one trade.
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While most expected the Oilers to go after a shutdown defenseman , Walman"s offense-heavy game is a perfect fit in Edmonton. The Oilers" team defense is fine -- twelfth in the league in expected goals allowed -- but they"ve struggled getting the puck out of their own zone and onto the sticks of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl .
That"s Walman"s greatest skill, one he"s shown in massive minutes against tough competition in both Detroit and San Jose. He broke out with the Red Wings in 2022-23 as the offensive partner Moritz Seider desperately needed, before taking on a heavy burden as the #1 in San Jose this season.
In Edmonton, all the pressure"s off. Walman won"t have to play 24 minutes a night or shut down the opposing team"s best players. Instead, he can either play next to Darnell Nurse on the second pair in a lower-stakes version of the Seider pairing, or crush third-pair minutes next to Ty Emberson on the third pair.
If he can put up such great numbers in difficult situations, what can he do in a smaller role on a contender?
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Apart from giving the Oilers a true puck mover in the bottom four, Walman can also take pressure off of the rest of the defense corps. Mattias Ekholm , Darnell Nurse, and Brett Kulak all figure to see a reduction in ice time, while replacement-level players Troy Stecher and John Klingberg become the depth pieces they should be.
Finally, Walman continues the Oilers" trade deadline trend of acquiring energetic players and personalities. Trent Frederic is as tough as they come, Max Jones has already endeared himself to fans just one game into his Oilers tenure, and Jake Walman hits the griddy on the ice when he scores big goals. Those kinds of players are invaluable to a veteran team that seems to be suffering under the long grind of an NHL season.
Walman is landing in a perfect situation. He no longer has to babysit a rebuilding team for 25 minutes a night, he can simply be one part of an elite blueline. Armed with his massive shot and high-end puck moving, Jake Walman fits the Oilers like a glove.
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