Edmonton Oilers defenseman Jake Walman has been fined $10,000 — $5,000 each for two separate incidents — during Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Florida Panthers.
Walman’s first fine of $5,000 was officially for ‘an incident involving Florida’s bench’ during the second period. Florida forward A.J. Greer stole Walman’s glove, dropping it into the Panthers’ bench. Walman retaliated with a water assault, blasting Greer – and broadcastr Brian Boucher between the two benches – with a lengthy spray from a water bottle. No penalty was called on the play.
“I obviously did that for a reason. I won’t go into the details. It’s just gamesmanship, I guess,” Walman said. “I’ve just got to realize there’s cameras everywhere and they see that stuff.”
Walman is not the first player to be fined for squirting a water bottle. Dallas Stars captain Jamie Benn, Ottawa Senator Scott Sabourin, Shawn Thornton , Kevin Hayes, and even New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist have all been fined for sharing water with opponents. Marcus Foligno avoided such a fine – perhaps because his target was Brendan Lemieux.
The Edmonton blueliner picked up another $5,000 fine for roughing Florida’s Matthew Tkachuk with just over five minutes remaining in the third period.
Walman delivered an unpenalized spear while Tkachuk’s arms were tied up by the Oilers’ John Klingberg. He followed up the jab with a series of gloved punches to Tkachuk’s head. Players from both teams came together in a scrum in the Oilers’ end of the ice. When the dust settled, Walman was issued two roughing minors along with two for unsportsmanlike conduct. Player Safety has since tacked on an additional fine.
The two teams combined for 140 penalty minutes in the game – 85 on the Oilers and 55 on the Panthers – fourth-most in a Stanley Cup Final game, and most of any game played in the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The Florida Panthers went on to defeat the Oilers 6-1, taking a 2-1 series lead. Officials for the game were referees Wes McCauley (#4) and Francis Charron (#6) with linespersons Scott Cherrey (#50) and Trent Knorr (#74).
