2 days ago
'Don't poke the bear': Did Oilers ace d-man go too far taunting Panthers player?
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After Tomas Nosek took the delay of game penalty near the end of overtime, Jake Walman let him know about it 😬
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) June 5, 2025
Was Walman's taunting of Nosek too much?
That's how former Oilers d-man and Spittin' Chiclets podcaster Ryan Whitney saw it. 'He's played incredible but I didn't like this,' Whitney said of Walman. 'Take the PP and move on. Don't need to be testing hockey gods/karma with that.'
Added Bill Horosz of the On the Prowl: Florida Panthers Den podcast, 'Don't poke the bear. Too late you already did.'
Others saw Walman's action in a different light.
On his 32 Thoughts podcast, Sporsnet's Elliotte Friedman noted Walman and perhaps also Oilers d-man John Klingberg had provoked Nosek. 'They made sure to get into Nosek's space on the way to the penalty box,' Friedman said, noting that this was something players on Toronto and Carolina hadn't done in the playoffs, never firing back as the bully boys of Florida kicked sand at them.
But Edmonton is a different beast, Friedman said. 'Edmonton is making a point of saying, 'Normally, you guys are the ones who set the physical and verbal tone. You get others you get under other skin. We're coming at you with this too.' They're saying, 'We're not letting Florida do all the talking. We're doing some of the talking here too.' '
