“I obviously did that for a reason. Won’t go into the details, just gamesmanship, I guess,” Edmonton Oilers defenseman Jake Walman said when asked about why he was spraying water towards the Florida Panthers’ bench in the second period of Game 3. Walman was fined $5,000, for that (unsportsmanlike conduct). However, that wasn’t the end of it, as he was fined another $5,000 for roughing Matthew Tkachuk late in the third period of the same game. The debate surrounding it had barely died down when, cut to Game 5, as the Oilers ended their night with a 5-2 loss against the Panthers, the defenseman got himself involved in yet another ‘situation’.With the score at 2-0 in favor of the Panthers at the end of the first period, Walman tried to stir the pot a little by giving Sam Bennett a shove in front of Pickard’s goal. Unsurprisingly, the shove elicited a response from Bennett, who’s not really known for being a gentleman on the ice. Remember how he sucker punched an unsuspecting Brad Marchand during Game 3 of the playoffs last year?That being said, his punch to Marchand had much more weight than the shove he gave to Walman in this case. But Walman tried his best to make the most out of it. While the Panthers’ No. 9 delivered a chest-level push to Walman, the Oilers D-man flung his head back as if to pretend he had been punched right in the face. “Jake Walman tries drawing a penalty after getting shoved by Sam Bennett ,” inferred Gino Hard. All that effort, however, went in vain as there was no call, and the officials were quick to pacify the situation and guide the teams off the ice for the break.Sam Bennett and Jake Walman exchange shots at the end of the first period pic.twitter.com/Xw7a6burKM— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) June 15, 2025 However, it’s understandable why Walman would want to target Bennett, considering the center had extended the Panthers’ lead to 2-0 with just under two minutes left in the first period. He now rides a six-game point streak and leads the league with 15 goals this postseason. He’s also managed to record 7 assists, 103 hits, and no less than a plus-6 rating over the twenty-two games he’s played in this postseason. And at the end of the day, as Bennett had the last laugh, fans went after Walman for what went down just ahead of the first intermission.Fans express fury over Jake Walman’s unnecessary hit on BennettOne fan thought that the officials should have done much more than just jumping in to break up what could have been a full-blown brawl. “This is where an embellishment call needs to be made,” they wrote, referring to how Jake Walman appeared to milk the shove from Bennett for a penalty. The NHL has strict rules to deter embellishment and/or diving. In January this year, Oskar Sundqvist of the St. Louis Blues was fined $2,000 as supplementary discipline under NHL Rule 64 for what appeared like a dive during a game against the Utah Hockey Club. The forward had previously received a warning after recording a similar offence in a November game against the New York Rangers.NHL, Eishockey Herren, USA Stanley Cup Playoffs-Edmonton Oilers at Vegas Golden Knights May 6, 2025 Las Vegas, Nevada, USA Edmonton Oilers defenseman Jake Walman 96 warms up before game one against the Vegas Golden Knights in the second round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs at T-Mobile Arena. Las Vegas T-Mobile Arena Nevada USA, EDITORIAL USE ONLY PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xStephenxR.xSylvaniex 20250506_ams_cs1_0158“Don’t believe he’s a repeat offender. The refs have brought it to this level (especially the duo reffing tonight),” wrote another fan, also believing that the officiating in the match was far from ideal. And as far as just Walman’s initial push on Bennett is concerned, one fan thought he tried to get the wrong guy upset: “watch the series, clearly mocking bennett.” Bennett is currently sitting at the top of this postseason’s goal-scoring leaderboard and is also one of the frontrunners for the Conn Smythe trophy.“He did that last game too,” wrote another netizen, seemingly upset with Walman’s track record. “He has been embarrassing this whole series. Becoming my most hated player in NHL. Dude is no class,” another fan echoed. Well, as things stand, Jake Walman may need to keep such antics to a minimum. The Oilers have had an obvious penalty problem this final series, and Walman better tread carefully if he wants his team to come back from the 3-2 deficit.The post Jake Walman Under Fire as Shocking Mid-Game Act Caught on Camera During Stanley Cup Clash appeared first on EssentiallySports.