Insider reveals a true flaw in Steve Yzerman's job as GM and it draws concern
Photo credit: NHLPA
The Detroit Red Wings traded defenseman Jake Walman to the San Jose Sharks during free agency and another force at play which led to GM Steve Yzerman fumbling Walman.
Jake Walman has to have earned more than enough frequent flyer miles, after the summer and the fall.
Walman would be a part of a sign-and-trade scheme that would send him to San Jose. He would spend more than half of the NHL season with the Sharks before they'd flip the top-four defenseman to the Edmonton Oilers for a first-round pick.
A first-round pick that GM Steve Yzerman had and could've used to get a defenseman who is not only a fan favorite in Detroit but is a reliable producer in the NHL.
Instead, he sat on his hands and took heat from Red Wings fans everywhere, as Walman made it to his second team in the West, the Oilers who are considered Stanley Cup contenders.
Andy Strickland of the Cam and Strick podcast suggested that other forces were at play that made Detroit want to make a deal. But there seems to be a pain point for Walman that the team couldn't address.
"I was a little bit shocked that they just threw me away. That's how I felt. I was upset. I wanted to prove people wrong, at that point, the following year. I thought we were building something in Detroit, and I was going to be a part of it."
Apparently, Andy Strickland thinks there was a fracture in the relationship between Walman and the Detroit coaching staff, and it seems rather than attempting to fix the issue he became a salary dump for the Wings organization.
This is a major issue for Yzerman who is not only in charge of acquiring talent, but managing players through the proper channels, and addressing locker room issues.
If this is an example of how he handles things in Detroit without giving Walman proper recourse, how will other talent who may have issues communicating "the correct way" be treated?
It's not like Walman is acting out like Tony DeAngelo here.
In the end, it's unfortunate how it played out for Jake Walman who was producing at a respectable clip in Detroit.
During the 2023-2024 season, he'd play 63 games for the Red Wings, scored 21 points (12 goals, 9 assists), and had his own signature celly after every goal.
Now he joins an organization with legitimate superstars Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid and could make a run at the Stanley Cup.
| POLL | ||
MARS 14 | 162 ANSWERS Insider reveals a true flaw in Steve Yzerman's job as GM and it draws concern Do you think GM Steve Yzerman of the Detroit Red Wings treated defenseman Jake Walman poorly? | ||
| Yes | 117 | 72.2 % |
| No | 45 | 27.8 % |
| List of polls | ||
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