Oilers trade for Jake Walman may lead to major demotion of star player

The Oilers deal for Walman appears all but official from NHL insiders, but is pending a roster issue at the conclusion of tonight's games.

Jake Walman is a very promising player that's played just 252 NHL games at 29 years old. Through his short career, he's posted phenomenal results - those of a very good top 4 defenceman.

This season with the San Jose Sharks, Walman has served as the team's number one defenceman and produced fantastic results.

Walman is averaging 23:10 of ice time per game, and on the rebuilding Sharks, has only a -1 rating. He's also able to play the left and right side, which is a huge asset for Edmonton.

Some analysts are claiming that Walman can have the Mattias Ekholm-type impact trade the Oilers needed. Walman could be good enough, and trusted with top end minutes, that Darnell Nurse could be bumped down to the third pairing.

Darnell Nurse is paid $9.25M to be a star player for the Oilers, but has struggled to live up to that contract value. His play has improved this season to not be a third pairing player, but Walman definitely could jump him in the defence pecking order.

However, the more likely outcome is that they try using Walman on the second pair on the right side, bumping John Klingberg out of the playoff lineup.

Klingberg has been far too much of a liability to be trusted in the playoffs, especially with the Oilers' suspect goaltending. For those reasons, it's far more likely Klingberg comes out over Ty Emberson or Brett Kulak.

The Oilers made a fantastic under the radar trade here to acquire Walman. If they only departed with futures in the trade, they'll be keeping their team intact and much stronger for the postseason.