Editor's note: Sheng Peng is a regular contributor to NBC Sports California’s Sharks coverage. You can read more of his coverage on San Jose Hockey Now, listen to him on the San Jose Hockey Now Podcast, and follow him on Twitter at @Sheng_Peng.
NEWARK, N.J. — Sharks defenseman Jake Walman wanted to clear the air.
Yes, he was scratched from the Sharks’ Nov. 5 game for non-hockey reasons (he missed an off-day treatment session because of a misunderstanding). Yes, he missed the Nov. 7 game because of an upper-body injury suffered in his last appearance on Nov. 2.
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That’s all, nothing more.
The top blue-liner, their offensive leader with nine points in 13 games, spoke exclusively with San Jose Hockey Now after practice on Saturday.
Sheng Peng: What’s been going on with the games you’ve missed recently?
Jake Walman: "I missed a treatment session for my upper-body injury on our day off, our treatment day, and it’s a team policy that you got to be in there if you’re dealing with an injury. Just from my end, I misunderstood our treatment plan. That was the reason for the scratch. It’s our team rule to be held accountable for something like that. If you have an injury, you got to be in there taking care of it. That’s what happened."
