San Jose Sharks defenseman Jake Walman and goaltender Yaroslav Askarov are bonding over their creative celebrations.
San Jose Sharks defenseman Jake Walman and goaltender Yaroslav Askarov are bonding over their creative celebrations.
San Jose Sharks defenseman Jake Walman and goaltender Yaroslav Askarov are bonding over their creative celebrations.
Walman has his iconic Griddy celebration, and Askarov is known for bench-pressing the net after a shootout win. Walman told reporters yesterday that the first conversation they had was about celebrations.
Walman has been with the Detroit Red Wings for the last three seasons. Before that, he was with the St. Louis Blues. Walman has never skated through anything like the shark head.
"It's cool. I don't think I've skated out through something before," Walman said. "I've definitely played here a bunch, and I've seen the Sharks come out of the shark head. I'm a big fisherman. I like sharks too. Being on the coast is fun. I think that'll be a cool touch."
Walman joins the Sharks with an opportunity to play big minutes and could start the season as the quarterback on the first powerplay unit.
"It's a great opportunity. Any opportunity I have, I like to take advantage of it," Walman said. "That's part of the reason why I'm really excited to come here."
As a 28-year-old, Walman will help build the identity of the new-age Sharks. The defenseman emphasized that the mixture of young players and veterans is a good balance.
"I think identity is a pretty big word, but everybody needs an identity. At the start, it's going to be hard work and competitiveness for us," Walman explained. "I think the other word is building a standard to come in the rink every day. A standard [for] every practice [and] every game that we can live by, and holding guys accountable to that standard too."
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