After allowing 13 goals in two games, Edmonton’s defensive collapse has placed a target on their high-priced blue liner as benchings and trade comparisons intensify.
The Edmonton Oilers' early defensive issues are raising questions about their blue line and their goaltending. Allowing 13 goals in two games means there's plenty of blame to go around, but Jake Walman seems to be at the end of a lot of finger-pointing a week into the season. No doubt he's had a difficult start, but is it fair to make the latest lightning rod on a team that seems to find one every season?
Fair or not, that seems to be what's happening.
Walman logged just over 13 minutes in Thursday's 9-7 win over the Vancouver Canucks. It was a wild game, one that certainly didn't showcase either team's defensive prowess. Walman was particularly shaky, and the result was a lot more sitting than playing under a new coaching staff that seems ready to hold players accountable.
The expectation was that Walman would play in the Oilers' top four this season. After one game, he was put on the bottom pair beside Shakir Mukhamadullin. In game two, he was noticeably inefficient, with Sportsnet's Mark Spector writing, " Lots of good things happening in this game for Edmonton. Jake Walman is not one of those."
Babcock noted, "We think he's too good a player not to be at the top of his game. So that's the challenge. Sometimes it doesn't go well." When it came to how much he played, Babcock admitted that associate coach D.J. Smith made the decisions on how played and when.
The ice time has fueled debate over where he fits as Edmonton works to tighten up its game.
On the Got Yer' Back podcast, Ryan Rishaug said he wouldn't healthy-scratch Walman after a single poor performance. Co-host Rob Brown took a different view, suggesting that if there is ever a time to sit a player in Walman's position, this could be it.
What Babcock and D.J. Smith will choose to do remains unknown. They can't be happy with the way Walman has performed, but there's a lot they likely aren't happy with, given that the Oilers have given up multiple chances, odd-man rushes, and left their goalies out to dry after a training camp full of messaging that this kind of out-score-your-problems play has to end.
The criticism isn't limited to one player. Martin Biron pointed out that Edmonton's problems extend beyond goaltending. In his view, the Oilers have allowed too many Grade-A chances, breakaways, rebounds, screens and scrums, and the defense needs to do more to help the goaltenders.
Still, the fan base and media have already singled out Walman. Beyond Spector's comments, Dennis King added another layer, suggesting Walman may not get the same latitude previously afforded to Darnell Nurse, whom the Oilers eventually traded after feeling Nurse wasn't living up to the hefty contract he'd signed.
Walman has a seven-year deal worth $7 million per season that runs until 2033.
King argues that Nurse spent years as a lightning rod for fan and media criticism, and it cost a player who was beloved by the leadership group and best friends with Connor McDavid. How much latitude will Walman get? The answer is likely not nearly as much.
Walman entered camp believing he could handle increased responsibility. So far, that opportunity appears to be shrinking.
With the Oilers still searching for defensive consistency, the coaching staff will have to decide how to deploy Walman in the games ahead. He needs to find the game he brought from San Jose when he first joined the Oilers and was a difference-maker in the Oilers' playoff run. Since that push, he's been injury-prone and apt to give the puck away.
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