EDMONTON -- Kris Knoblauch made his point loud and clear when discussing the impact Jake Walman has made on the Edmonton Oilers.

“I’m pretty sure we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for Jake, among others,” the Oilers coach said on Thursday.

“... Jake’s game was tremendous, especially missing [Mattias] Ekholm. We needed guys to step up in Ekholm’s absence, and he was one of those guys.”

Walman has been stepping up since being acquired by the Oilers in a trade with the San Jose Sharks on March 7 for a conditional first-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft and forward prospect Carl Berglund.

And like Knoblauch said, Walman needed to.

Just three days prior to the trade, Ekholm left in the third period of a 6-2 loss to the Anaheim Ducks to be examined by medical staff. The 35-year-old defense

See Full Page