It registers as barely a drop in the pond compared to the big wave made by the Dallas Stars signing $12-million man Mikko Rantanen, but the Edmonton Oilers did what they set out to do on trade deadline: Improve their roster.
The question, of course, is will it end up being enough?
They took their first step into the post-trade-deadline landscape Thursday by inserting newly acquired defenceman Jake Walman into the lineup against those very same Stars in his new home at Rogers Place.
“I guess you can compare it to a dream, kind of. You walk in and you’re seeing things for the first time. I’ve got to pinch myself a little bit,” Walman said from his stall in the home dressing room after morning skate. “It’s cool for me being back, seeing Connor (McDavid), familiar with a bunch of guys on the team, and a bunch of new faces, so I’m excited to get going.”
Coming from San Jose for a conditional first-round draft pick in 2026 and forward prospect Carl Berglund, the deadline deal extended Walman’s season by rescuing him from the last-place team in the league.
“Obviously a little bit shocked. I don’t think it was really expected but at the same time, anything can happen. That’s another thing that I’ve learned,” said Walman, a six-foot-one, 218-pound native of Toronto. “When I found out it was Edmonton, obviously, the challenge they have here and kind of working toward the end goal was something I’ve always wanted to be a part of.
“And playing meaningful games, it’s a little bit of a different situation than what I was in, but I’ve always wanted to play meaningful games at this time.”
‘Wally’s a great player’: McDavid
For a team that lost six of its previous eight heading into Saturday’s late puck drop, the Oilers hope his addition is just as meaningful down the stretch.
“I’m excited about it, Wally’s a great player. I kind of grew up playing against him, playing with him, so I know him well,” McDavid said. “Solid, big body, skates well, defends well.
“He will help back there, and obviously with the moves before (to acquire Trent Frederic and Max Jones), it’s exciting.”
On Saturday, Walman was slotted in the third pairing with Troy Stecher, as the Oilers had to shift things around in order to accommodate for injuries to Mattias Ekholm and John Klingberg.
“Certainly, early in his career, a puck-moving defenceman, good in the offensive zone, a great shot getting pucks through,” said Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch. “But lately has been getting stronger and stronger defensively, and in San Jose more of a shutdown role playing against other teams’ top line, penalty kill on the left side and right side.
“Depending on what we need if everyone’s healthy and whether he plays left side or right side, but also the flexibility on when there’s injuries, being able to move him around.”
Wherever he ends up, Walman wanted to waste no time adding his game to the Oilers’ mix.
“I’m going to give it my all. I’m competitive, I love to win and anything I can do to help the team,” he said. “I feel my skating is probably my biggest asset, and then shooting the puck.
“You look up and down the lineup, you see so many great players. It’s getting the puck to them and making them do the work, and just kind of getting open and doing my part in trying to fit in. So, fit in as quickly as possible and then the rest will fall.”
All in all, while it might not have been the splashiest of trade deadlines for the Oilers, McDavid said the difference is noticeable to those in the dressing room.
“In the summer, we lost a lot of size and speed, and we’ve added some of that back,” the captain said. “So, it’s good.”
Just how good remains to be seen. Though Dallas represents the first big test at a time when the rich have gotten richer.
“It’s the trade deadline, and that’s going to happen; there’s going to be teams that load up,” McDavid said. “I like our moves, I feel like we’re in a good spot.
“That’s all we can ask for.”
E-mail: [email protected]
On Twitter: @GerryModdejonge
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