Jake Walman completely blindsided and devastated to be traded by the Red Wings

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Daniel Lucente
October 21, 2024 (10:13 PM)

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Former defenseman of the Detroit Red Wings Jake Walman said that when Steve Yzerman traded him away from the team, he was very heartbroken and sad.

The NHL has been known to be an underlying business-first mentality in which player moves have often seemed ruthless. Fans are crestfallen when their favorite player is traded or signs with a new team. The players themselves are not beyond the emotional toll, as many players develop close bonds with their teams and cities before being blind-sided with sudden change.

Jake Walman is a former defenseman with the Detroit Red Wings. Recently, he shared his personal experience of this harsh reality: He enjoyed an offseason phone call from Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman. He had been traded to the San Jose Sharks. That came as a surprise to Walman, who even admitted he was devastated because he felt that he was going on well with the Red Wings.

It wasn't easy for Walman to leave Detroit. The fans took the trade as hard as anyone, as Walman had become a fan favorite with the three seasons he has spent with the club, and the bond between him and the city was palpable. The 28-year-old defenceman expressed his gratitude publicly regarding the support he got from the fans in Detroit by saying, "They embraced me, and I embraced them back." For so many, Walman was more than a player; he was a symbol of dedication and hard work.

What really made things tougher for the trade to swallow for both Walman and the fans was how one-sided of a deal it truly was. In return for Walman and a 2024 second-round draft pick, the Red Wings received only future considerations from the Sharks. This was particularly puzzling as Walman had just signed a three-year deal with a $3.4 million annual salary cap hit. It's the timing and type of trade that has many scratching their heads, wondering what exactly Yzerman's strategy was.

While Jake Walman has taken the trade in stride and doesn't hold any grudges toward Yzerman or the Red Wings, he did admit it is one of those things that he may never quite accept. The same will be true of him leaving Detroit fans, who had begun to regard Walman as one of their own, in a state where the sting of his leaving will be felt for a good long while.