Detroit Red Wings fans have been up in arms since Tuesday after a couple of shocking trades. First, Detroit traded defenseman Andrew Gibson to the Nashville Predators in exchange for a second-round pick and a forward prospect. The second deal saw the Red Wings trade Jake Walman to the San Jose Sharks in a salary dump.
General manager Steve Yzerman spoke about the topic from the 2024 NHL Draft floor. And the Red Wings legend had a rather interesting response when asked about the deal. Yzerman said he felt comfortable with the return for Gibson, but the Walman trade was simply due to the circumstances of the roster and the league.
“We were able to acquire — in the trade with Nashville — a similar prospect, at least on our board, for Andrew (Gibson) in Jesse Kiiskinen and get a second-round pick. And then, it's really difficult to move money right now. I've tried. Honestly, I've tried. We needed to move at least one contract to do some of the things we want to do. Unfortunately, that was the price to do it,” he said, via Detroit's official YouTube channel.
More information on Red Wings' Jake Walman trade
The Walman trade certainly came as a surprise. The former Red Wings rearguard emerged last season as a top pairing defenseman in Detroit in 202-23. He formed a reliable partnership with Mortiz Seider on the blueline. And while Walman didn't live up to his 2022-23 form, he was still a solid defenseman on a rather solid salary.
Steve Yzerman's decision to move Walman — as well as his silence on the matter — sparked a ton of speculation. Many believe the deal is part of something bigger for Detroit. Yzerman seemed to confirm this when mentioning the need to move a contract on Friday. But it appears as if the Walman trade in and of itself came out of nowhere.
The Red Wings reportedly didn't shop Walman around, according to EP Rinkside's Sean Shapiro. Additionally, Shapiro notes that teams around the league would have offered an asset in return if they knew the defenseman was available. Shapiro said the Sharks were “happily stunned” when Detroit offered to include a second-round sweetener in this deal.
It's still unclear exactly why Yzerman assigned negative trade value to Jake Walman. Perhaps there is something more at play that isn't entirely clear at this time. In any event, the Red Wings cleared nearly $3.5 million in salary, positioning themselves to make a big move in NHL Free Agency on Monday if they so choose.
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