The Edmonton Oilers are just 13 games into their season, but one of their highest-paid defensemen is already watching from the press box.
Jake Walman, who carries a seven-year deal worth $7 million per season with a full no-movement clause, was moved out of the regular defensive pairings at Tuesday's practice and skated as the seventh defenseman. The move all but confirmed he would be a healthy scratch for Wednesday's matchup against the Calgary Flames.
Head coach Mike Babcock did not shy away from explaining the decision.
"I just stand there each night, and I watch the guys, and then my job is to make the decision to help the team win, and that's what I do each and every night," Babcock said. "And it's personal to the guy, but it's not personal to me, and it wouldn't matter if you're my son. That doesn't work like that."
Babcock elaborated further, noting that he has repeatedly observed the same mistakes on video and that Walman keeps finding himself in the wrong spot. When asked how Walman would handle the benching, Babcock offered a curt reply: "You should ask him."
The writing had been on the wall for some time. In Monday night's game against the Detroit Red Wings, Walman logged just 13 minutes and 16 seconds of ice time, the second-lowest total he has recorded in a regular-season game where he wasn't injured. After Mattias Ekholm went down with an injury during that contest, it was rookie Shakir Mukhamadullin who slid up the lineup to pair with Evan Bouchard, not Walman.
The underlying numbers paint a grim picture. Edmonton has been outscored 10-3 during Walman's 109 five-on-five minutes this season. That translates to a 5.5 goals-against-per-hour rate, reportedly the worst among any NHL defenseman with over 100 minutes by a significant margin.
Walman's struggles are not entirely new. His 2025-26 campaign was also rocky, though injuries played a role. This season, he missed three games earlier on, and there was speculation at the time that the absence may have amounted to a soft benching rather than a genuine injury.
The Oilers are in action later tonight as one of their priciest blue-line investments in the lineup watches them from the press box. Babcock has made it clear that the decision is purely about winning, regardless of the contract attached to the player.
