Jake Walman (born February 20, 1996) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman for the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was drafted 82nd overall by the St. Louis Blues in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.

Jake Walman
Walman with the Detroit Red Wings in 2023.
Born (1996-02-20) February 20, 1996 (age 28)
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Height6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight218 lb (99 kg; 15 st 8 lb)
PositionDefence
ShootsLeft
NHL team
Former teams
Detroit Red Wings
St. Louis Blues
National team Canada
NHL draft82nd overall, 2014
St. Louis Blues
Playing career2017–present

Early life

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Walman was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and is Jewish.[1] He holds American citizenship, through his mother Mary-Anne, a native of Providence, Rhode Island.[2]

Playing career

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Walman played junior hockey with the Toronto Jr. Canadiens in the Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL) before committing to collegiate hockey with Providence College of the Hockey East. Prior to his freshman season with the Friars, Walman was selected at the 2014 NHL Entry Draft in the third round, 82nd overall, by the St. Louis Blues.

On March 28, 2017, having completed his junior season with the Friars in 2016–17, Walman concluded his collegiate career early, signing a three-year, entry-level contract with the St. Louis Blues.[3]

Walman made his NHL debut for the Blues during the 2019–20 season. In three seasons with the Blues he recorded four goals and four assists in 57 games.On March 21, 2022, Walman was traded to the Detroit Red Wings, along with Oskar Sundqvist, and a second-round pick in 2023 NHL Entry Draft, in exchange for Nick Leddy and Luke Witkowski[4]

On August 11, 2022, Walman as a restricted free agent was re-signed by the Red Wings to a one-year, $1.05 million contract extension for the 2022–23 season.[5] After opening the season on the injured-reserve, Walman returned and was given an increased role on the team, playing alongside Moritz Seider. Walman scored the overtime-winning goal for the Red Wings on December 28 against the Pittsburgh Penguins, during which Detroit initially trailed by a 4–0 score. He subsequently went viral for celebrating with the Griddy dance.[6] On 28 February 2023, Walman was re-signed to a three-year, $10.2 million contract extension with the Red Wings.[7]

International play

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Walman, a dual citizen who exclusively trained in the Canadian hockey system attended the training camp for the United States men's national junior ice hockey team in preparation for the 2016 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.

Despite being considered a lock to make the team, Walman wasn't eligible to play for the Americans, despite living in Providence, Rhode Island, for 16 months due to not meeting the IIHF’s requirement of playing two consecutive seasons in the country in order to play for the national team, as he was in the midst of his second season playing in the United States.

USA Hockey attempted to appeal the ruling, which was denied by the IIHF. Following the ruling, Walman was invited to the Canadian men’s national junior ice hockey team’s selection camp, but did not make the final roster.[8][9]

Walman accepted an invitation to join the Canadian national team at the 2023 IIHF World Championship. He was however forced to withdraw his name from the roster due to an upper-body injury, prior to the start of the tournament.[10][11]

Career statistics

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Regular seasonPlayoffs
SeasonTeamLeagueGPGAPtsPIMGPGAPtsPIM
2013–14Toronto Jr. CanadiensOJHL437263387
2014–15Providence CollegeHE411151644
2015–16Providence CollegeHE2713152820
2016–17Providence CollegeHE397182542
2016–17Chicago WolvesAHL7213282132
2017–18Chicago WolvesAHL402111314
2017–18Binghamton DevilsAHL1925710
2018–19San Antonio RampageAHL663101348
2019–20San Antonio RampageAHL578192732
2019–20St. Louis BluesNHL10000
2020–21St. Louis BluesNHL24112810000
2021–22St. Louis BluesNHL323366
2021–22Detroit Red WingsNHL190444
2022–23Detroit Red WingsNHL63991845
2023–24Detroit Red WingsNHL631292144
NHL totals20225265110710000

Awards and honours

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AwardYear
OJHL
First Team All-Prospect2014
Rookie of the Year2014
Top Prospect Award2014
OHA B.J. Monro Memorial Trophy2014
CJHL Rookie of the Year2014
CJHL Top Prospect Award2014
College
HE First All-Star Team2016, 2017
New England D1 All-Stars2016, 2017
East First All-American Team2016
East Second All-American Team2017

See also

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References

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