Jake Walman a cheaper and better upgrade for the Detroit Red Wings

The Detroit Red Wings went out and got busy at the trade deadline. Off-loading some defenseman in the form of Nick Leddy and Troy Stecher. The team moved Stecher for draft capital but sent Leddy to the Blues, flipping him for Jake Walman.

The Detroit Red Wings bringing in Walman is one of those “change of scenery” moves at first glance, but it will truly be an upgrade for the organization moving forward. The simplest way to look at Walman’s addition is that he is younger and likely going to be better than Leddy was in the short time that he was here.

Walman will also be well worth his money while also being far cheaper than the $5 million cap hit that Leddy was carrying. All-in-all it seems like this trade with the Blues will result in Walman being a real benefit and steal.

It’s early, but Walman is still just 26 years old and has room to grow in this defense core which is led by Moritz Seider and Filip Hronek, with another first-round pick, Simon Edvinsson being in the pipeline.

Jake Walman is going to be a steal for the Detroit Red Wings.

He appeared in 32 games with the Blues, where he had three goals and three assists for six total points. He was a plus-three on the season as well. He averaged 1.5 shots per game and was an active participant in the offensive zone from the point.

Though the Red Wings are hoping that Walman is going to be able to bring some more offense to the team as well, he’s someone who’s all-around an upgrade from Leddy, at least the version of Leddy that the Red Wings had playing for them this season.

Walman is still young enough to settle in nicely and possibly show some more offense. He was struggling to get playing time in St. Louis with their crop of defensemen. The former third-round pick still has plenty to offer, and the Red Wings were able to steal him.

The Red Wings were able to walk away with quite the haul from their trade with the Blues. Walman is just one part of this package but is going to be a better and cheaper option for the team to add to their defense core.

He’s only played one game for the Red Wings, but after he gets some games under his belt, he should be able to add a lot of value and wind up being a quality option in the team’s defense core.