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What role will Oilers defenceman Jake Walman play next season?
What role will Oilers defenceman Jake Walman play next season?

New York Times

time14-07-2025

  • Sport
  • New York Times

What role will Oilers defenceman Jake Walman play next season?

Acquiring defenceman Jake Walman was an underrated move made by the Edmonton Oilers at the trade deadline. The veteran was a strong plug-and-play replacement for the injured Mattias Ekholm. He was an enormous help on the run to the postseason in March and April, and his contract expires in the summer of 2026. Advertisement As fans contemplate next year, there appears to be a logjam on the left side of the defence. A decade ago, the Oilers had such a large percentage of left-handers on defence that many called it the Leftorium. The current depth chart isn't that unbalanced, but there are too many qualified veterans to run every game on the left side in Edmonton. What's the solution? Walman should be higher on the depth chart. Here's why. When Walman arrived, Ekholm was injured, and the new hire played a feature role. Here are the five-on-five minutes versus elites per game by Edmonton's defence from the deadline to the end of the regular season. All numbers five-on-five, via Puck IQ Ekholm barely played down the stretch, but did average over six minutes per game versus elites for Edmonton leading up to the trade deadline. After his arrival, Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch used Walman heavily versus elites, with Darnell Nurse and Brett Kulak joining him in heavy minutes against elites. Those three defenders, along with right-hander Evan Bouchard, formed the top-four defence for Edmonton during Ekholm's absence. How did he perform? Walman delivered 50 percent Dangerous Fenwick (similar to expected goals) in those tough minutes against elites. He was especially effective with Nurse (70 percent DFF in 16 minutes) but struggled paired with Bouchard (44 percent Fenwick in 37 minutes). Both samples are far too small to be reliable, but do tell us Walman was playing in the important moments of the game, and played well with Nurse in a minute sample. If we expand the ice time to include all five-on-five minutes against each level of competition, we get a clearer view of Walman's time with the Oilers. All numbers five-on-five, via Natural Stat Trick Walman's time on ice ranked No. 4 among Edmonton's starters at five-on-five. That's second pair, but with Ekholm on the shelf for 75 percent of the schedule down the stretch. How much would Walman have played with a healthy Ekholm? That answer probably comes next regular season, when both men (plus Nurse and Kulak) should be healthy and ready to play. Advertisement Based purely on numbers, Walman and Nurse were the only two players inside the top four listed here who delivered at over 50 percent in goal share and expected goal share. There's at least some bad luck in these numbers for Bouchard and Kulak, but Walman's performance shines in this look. All but Ekholm played over 200 minutes between the deadline and the end of the season, so these numbers are more reliable. Kulak is the outlier here; those are tough results across all opponents at five-on-five. He was also the left-handed defenceman most often deployed on his off-side, and that may contribute to the coaching decision in the fall. Kulak may not be the ideal option for right-side duty on the second pairing, a spot in the depth chart he often filled last season. It's possible Walman is a smarter bet on the right side. The most recent look at Knoblauch's defensive deployment came during the postseason. Injuries and slumps in performance had an impact on decisions, but it's worth looking at the spring pairings before projecting next season's defensive combinations. All numbers five-on-five, via Natural Stat Trick This is a revealing look at the process Knoblauch and his staff were going through during the playoffs. Walman found real success with John Klingberg, a puck-moving defender with passing flair. The tandem didn't spend as much time defending as other duos, because the puck was being passed out of the zone, tape-to-tape. At the other end of the spectrum, Nurse struggled with three separate partners during the postseason. His 96 minutes with Bouchard earned a better outscoring rate based on expected goals, but the gap between regular-season goal share (53 percent, 55 expected) and playoff run (47 percent actual and expected) suggests Nurse was playing too much and needed a partner with excellent passing ability. Advertisement Walman, with Klingberg and Bouchard, shone like a diamond. His regular season five-on-five goal share (62 percent, 56 expected) was a prelude to his impressive playoff run (54 percent share, 56 percent expected). Walman was a big part of Edmonton's successful playoff spring. The Oilers deployed Nurse for 444 minutes (five-on-five) during the playoffs; Walman played 369 minutes in the game state. Matchups were part of the reason — the coaching staff clearly trusted Nurse more than Walman, Ekholm or Kulak — but in the clear light of day, that decision is open to question. During the pivotal Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final, Knoblauch ran Nurse with Kulak for 17 five-on-five minutes (0-1 goals), Bouchard with a less than healthy Ekholm for 16 minutes (0-1 goals), and Walman and Klingberg for 15 minutes (1-0 goals). That's basically rolling three pairings close to equally. However, there was mounting evidence of three five-on-five developments: Hindsight is 20/20, and the 2025 final is long over and put to bed. For the purposes of our conversation, where should Walman play in the fall? Much will depend on Ekholm's health. If he's 100 percent, the quality of Ekholm and Bouchard together (62 percent goals, 60 percent expected over the last three regular seasons) dictates that they should be the top pairing. Beyond that, Walman should be used as a key player on the second pairing. The numbers suggest there's a possibly dynamite second pairing on the roster. Here are the with and without you numbers from the regular season for the potential second pairing. All numbers five-on-five, via Natural Stat Trick Experts say 106 minutes is just past halfway to a reliable total (200 minutes is the standard), but the strength of these numbers — and the absence of a strong right-handed shooting defender for the second pairing make the Nurse-Walman pairing plausible. Walman on the right side, Kulak left side, third pair. Advertisement The Oilers organization is on record as being pleased with the team's defence next season. Management made small moves on the blue line this summer, with the idea of returning the entire group in the fall. Pushing Walman up the depth chart, and fading Nurse's minutes (especially when away from Walman) are key tweaks that need to be considered for 2025-26.

Senators add another prospect at a ‘premium' position with Logan Hensler NHL Draft pick
Senators add another prospect at a ‘premium' position with Logan Hensler NHL Draft pick

New York Times

time28-06-2025

  • Sport
  • New York Times

Senators add another prospect at a ‘premium' position with Logan Hensler NHL Draft pick

OTTAWA — If you're building toward being a contending team in the NHL, you will need a high-end right-shot defenceman at some point. There's a reason why they're coveted every offseason or trade deadline. Many teams seek a capable defenceman who can seamlessly play on the right, knowing they can rely on them for one-timers, easier passes and natural puck retrievals. Advertisement So, when it was the Ottawa Senators' turn to pick at this year's decentralized NHL Draft in Los Angeles, they didn't hesitate. 'You never have enough defencemen. Right-handed defencemen are a premium,' Senators head scout Don Boyd said. The Senators made a quick trade with the Nashville Predators from 21st overall to 23rd, also obtaining a third-round draft choice in the process. The selection? Logan Hensler, an 18-year-old, 6-foot-2, right-shot defenceman from Minnesota, who projects to be a top-four defenceman at the NHL level. He was the youngest player on the 2025 gold-medal winning United States World Juniors squad in Ottawa earlier this year. '(I'm) super pumped up,' Hensler said from Los Angeles. 'It's a great organization, great atmosphere, great people, and I'm super excited to get started.' The Wisconsin product was projected to go 20th to the Columbus Blue Jackets in Corey Pronman's final mock draft and was high on the Sens' internal board. But they made the trade down believing they could still get him. 'We moved back and got another asset,' Boyd said. 'We don't have, as of now, a second-round pick. We would go from (21st overall) to our next pick being (96th overall).' Hensler impressed the Sens with his ability to close in on players and stifle oncoming rushes thanks to his skating. His mobility also helps with his puck-moving attributes. The Athletic prospect expert Scott Wheeler compared Hensler to Columbus Blue Jackets right-shot Damon Severson. But Hensler says he likens his game to current Sens' No. 1 defenceman Jake Sanderson, who's only four years older than Hensler. 'I think we have very good skating,' Hensler said. 'A big piece I'm trying to take (from him) is how simple and efficient he is. He's overall an elite defenceman and that's a goal I'm chasing, and I think I can reach it.' Advertisement And the fact that he can play the position while right-handed — Hensler says he's the only right-handed person in his family — proved tantalizing for the Senators. 'There's a lot more left-handed defencemen in the league, or in the world,' Boyd said. 'So, to get a right-handed defenseman that moves like that, has that kind of size closes on people. We felt we were on the right track.' Boyd isn't just using platitudes when describing right-shot defencemen. The Florida Panthers just won another Stanley Cup with Aaron Ekblad and trade deadline acquisition Seth Jones logging major minutes and producing when needed. Both right-shot defencemen. Very recently, two other Atlantic Division foes made significant trades with those players in mind. The Montreal Canadiens landed Noah Dobson from the Islanders in exchange for Emil Heineman and two first-round picks before signing him to an eight-year extension. The Buffalo Sabres were panned for trading away JJ Peterka in exchange for Josh Doan and right-shot defenceman Michael Kesselring. But there aren't many right-shot defencemen with Kesselring's size and frame with his mobility and offensive output. He scored seven goals and 29 points for Utah last season. The Senators now have two right-shot defencemen at the top of their prospect pool in Hensler and last year's 6-foot-5 first-round pick, Carter Yakemchuk. Yakemchuk's offensive side has shown more prominently than Hensler's, and the Senators are seemingly giving him a chance to compete for a roster spot this fall. If nothing else, he'll get his chance to play pro with the Belleville Senators in the AHL. Hensler says he's a 'two-way' defenceman, but his offensive numbers aren't eye-popping. Hensler only registered one assist in all seven games he played at the 2025 World Juniors. Hensler scored two goals and 12 points in 32 games with the University of Wisconsin at the collegiate level. He insists his offensive game will be 'unlocked' and the Sens see that upside, too. Penalty killing will also be a priority for Hensler. Advertisement 'I think there's more offence in his game than if you look at the numbers this year,' Boyd said. 'I think this next year will be huge for me, just confidence-wise,' Hensler said. 'I think we've got a lot of skill coming in this year for Wisconsin.' Hensler should have had his moment to say hello to his new team moments after being drafted, but technical difficulties ruined the moment. This year's draft was decentralized, with teams operating from war rooms at home. Boyd, Sens GM Steve Staios, owner Michael Andlauer and area scout Dan Boeser were supposed to greet Hensler from the Canadian Tire Centre while on camera. But Hensler couldn't hear them. Granted, it was all a 'blur' for the teenager anyway. He eventually connected with management over the phone. 'Got to see them face-to-face, sort of,' Hensler said. The Sens will have more face time with Hensler once development camp comes around, and when it comes time to check on Hensler during his sophomore season at Wisconsin this fall. Between Hensler and Yakemchuk, the Senators are building up their defensive group as a position of strength in their prospect pool. A necessary choice considering how valuable right-shot defencemen have become.

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