For nearly half a decade, the Edmonton Oilers’ third pair was anchored by Brett Kulak, a speedy, defensive D-man with exceptional durability.

But when Kulak’s game fell apart last season, GM Stan Bowman shipped him out of town, and the Oilers have been trying to fill the void ever since. Finding the solution will be an early test for Mike Babcock.

“As far as the lineup goes, I don’t know because I haven’t been here long enough,” said Babcock ahead of the season opener. “When the real bullets start flying, you usually learn a lot more.”

Well, in the first two games of the season, the bullets have flown all right. So far, it’s Jake Walman and Shakir Mukhamadullin who’ve gotten shelled.

In Thursday night’s victory, Walman and Mukhamadullin went minus-3 and minus-4, respectively, while posting a laughable 17 per cent expected goal share together. They were thoroughly dominated by the lowly Vancouver Canucks.

Walman, who was briefly benched on Thursday, wants to get back to the game that made him successful when he first arrived in Oil Country. He was fantastic in 2025, but it’s gotten away from him since then. How can the new coaching staff get their $7 million defenceman on the right track and fix their flailing third pair?

Ty Emberson should be in the Oilers lineup

It always struck me as odd that Mukhamadullin took over Ty........

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