Pressure Is Mounting For Oilers' Jake Walman As Early Defensive Struggles Lead To Healthy Scratch

For much, if not most of his final season as an Edmonton Oilers defenseman, Darnell Nurse was a flashpoint of controversy.

While Nurse wasn't the 1A blueliner his $9.25-million annual salary would suggest, he became a focal point of fan and management frustration largely because of the cap hit that was attached to him.

Now that he's gone, another Oilers D-man is in the early stages of replacing Nurse as a target for frustration: Jake Walman.

Edmonton coach Mike Babcock's recent usage of Walman — and the fact he was made a healthy scratch for the Oilers Wednesday game against the Calgary Flames — suggests he could become a whipping boy sooner than later.

Some of that is unfair, at least, at this stage in Walman's season. He's played only nine games, posting just one point in that span. But he was never signed to his lucrative extension to be a major point-producer.

Walman's best offensive season came in 2024-25, when he posted 40 points in 65 games between the San Jose Sharks and the Oilers. He hasn't reached that level of scoring since, but the bigger problem area right now is Walman's minus-7 rating.

Plus-minus isn't a perfect indicator of a player's effectiveness, but it's one of many factors indicating Walman's defensive struggles.

Opponents are generating 16.5 high-danger chances per 60 minutes at 5-on-5 while Walman is on the ice, which is the 12th-most in the NHL and the highest among defensemen on the Oilers. He also has the highest expected goals against rating on a per-60 minute basis at 5-on-5 on the Oilers (3.14) according to Natural Stat Trick.

In other words: opponents are generating offense at a much higher rate than the Oilers are while Walman is on the ice.

These numbers suggest that he isn't playing to the standards that come with a $7-million salary, which runs for another six seasons after this one. The time and money committed to this player — he's the second-highest paid defenseman on the Oilers — is why his usage under Babcock has been troubling to start the season.

After averaging 18:45 of ice time last season, Walman has been playing 14:45 this season. He averaged 21:26 just two years ago, so this number is trending in the wrong way. Clearly, Babcock is not trustful of Walman at the moment, and the defenseman needs to find a way to rebound in a big way.

If these numbers are being produced in limited minutes, the chances of Walman earning a larger opportunity are likely pretty low as things stand. And Babcock isn't sounding like he's prepared to throw Walman a life-preserver. 

Asked whether Walman was aware his benching was coming, Babcock told media, "For sure. If you've gone over and over and over it – and (the benching has) been coming now. You (reporters) watch the game once and I watch the game lots. And I see those clips, and I see those clips over and over and over again, so if you're in the wrong clips, pretty soon you're in the wrong spot."

Elaborating, Babcock made it clear what Walman has to do to be a trusted defenseman on his team. 

"You earn your opportunity," Babcock said. "You earn it through competitiveness and detail. And so what are you? If you're a D-man, there can't be chances against and the puck can't go in your net. That's just a very, very simple thing, and especially if you're not an offensive D-man.

"So that's the challenge for him. It's never easy. Everyone thinks they should play more minutes and everyone thinks they should play every night, and that they can do more. The reality is, though, our job is just (to) watch and see what guys give us the best chance to win."

That isn't a career-ending indictment of Walman's game, but it's far from an endorsement.

The stakes are sky-high for Babcok and the Oilers this season, and if there's a leaky part of the lineup, it's going to be addressed in short order.

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