Steve Yzerman is officially building a team in Detroit. The newest member of the core is defenseman Jake Walman, who signed a three-year, $10.2 million extension with the Red Wings on Tuesday.
This comes in the wake of a two-year extension for defenseman Olli Maatta and amid talks on a long-term extension for captain Dylan Larkin. It also comes the night after Walman played his guts out in the Red Wings' loss to the Senators, a well-timed reward for a player who ate seven pucks, several hits and more than 23 minutes of ice time, who took a beating and kept taking his shift.
On a team that needs more gamers, Walman continues to look like one. There might be no better way to win Yzerman's respect.
Acquired from the Blues as part of the Nick Leddy trade last March, Walman has emerged as a top-pair defenseman for Detroit next to Moritz Seider. He has 10 points and a team-high plus-17 rating in 40 games this season in his first major opportunity in the NHL.
Even more encouraging, the advanced metrics say Walman and Seider have been one of the top defensive pairs in the league. Their five-on-five expected goals share (58.2) ranks seventh among duos with at least 300 minutes of ice time this season, according to Natural Stat Trick.
Walman, who turned 27 this month, was set to be an unrestricted free agent this summer. He chose a good time to have a breakout season, securing himself a payday and a spot in Detroit for the next three years.
