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Yesterday’s entry was one that kept evolving as the day went. A trade of Gibson to Nashville brought in Jesse Kiiskenin and a 2nd round pick that had belonged to Tampa Bay. That 2nd round pick was then attached to Jake Walman who was sent to San Jose for “future considerations”. In between the two deals, Pavel Datsyuk was announced as an entry in the next Hall of Fame induction. Busy day.

Of all the deals that had been bandied about, this one seemed to come out of nowhere. It had been reported that Walman suffered an injury that kept him out of the lineup. While there is no reason to doubt that, the team could have put him on LTIR if that was the issue. Ansar Khan at Mlive seems to have shed some additional light on the scenario. Click the link to read the article but it was this portion that grabbed my attention:

Walman, 28, fell out of favor with the coaching staff the second half of the season and his performance declined after he was split up from defense partner Moritz Seider

Again, credit to Khan for that additional information. With the presumptive extension of Seider and the presumed promotion of Edvinsson and Johansson, Detroit has 7 D currently. Khan added that Detroit would like very much to get Gostisbehere back into the fold.

This is the first I’ve heard of any issue the organization may have had with Walman. Several comments on yesterday’s post are hoping for a move after clearing 3.4m by moving Walman. The team could still open an additional 2m with a buyout of Holl. While it seems there is hope for an upgrade, it is difficult to gauge what the market is providing.

With Buffalo buying out Skinner and Ottawa upgrading in net, it’s also being rumored that Utah may be willing to part with two first round picks for Marner (though Marner has a good deal of control in terms of where or if he moves on). The league wide reshuffle is going to be fascinating to watch. So far it looks to be more intriguing than the UFA market.

Let me know your thoughts. Flipping the pick from the Nashville deal and moving Walman caught many off guard. Will any other deals coincide with this move if it’s clear Gostisbehere is off the table? The power play specialist is rumored to have plenty of interest on the open market. Things seem to be heating up as the playoffs have ended, and it could be a busy couple of weeks ahead.

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