If one wanted to define the phrase “comfortably uncomfortable,” one might start with a glance into former Kings defenseman Sean Walker’s eyes.
Walker, now in a contract year with the Philadelphia Flyers, has seized on the narrowest of opportunities time and time again. He’s done so while facing harrowing possibilities with a sincere smile along a path that took him from small-town Keswick, Ontario, to the lesser-heralded Junior A ranks to a mid-major NCAA program at Bowling Green and a solitary pro contract offer once he finished his career there.
“I don’t know if it’s because he’s from a small town or because he grew up playing junior hockey in small communities, or he went to a school that wasn’t maybe one of the top, top hockey programs but a mid-tier school that emphasized work and effort,” Kings assistant general manager Nelson Emerson said. “But the one thing that Sean realizes is that no one is bigger than the game of hockey. The game can always come up and bite you, but if you respect it and do the right things, it’ll treat you very well.”
Emerson, like Kings GM Rob Blake, is a Bowling Green alumnus, and Walker was graduating from there at a time when the Kings were turning over stones to fast-track a daunting rebuild. Walker’s skating leaped off the screen, but his character became equally apparent.
Not only did Walker earn a look from the Kings – who like Bowling Green had been at the NCAA level, were the only team showing serious interest – but they got him an AHL contract and, only a year later, a fresh new two-way deal that landed Walker in the NHL.
“He had to work his way up all the time, a smaller defenseman, he had to compete and be a good teammate. He became a captain on the Bowling Green team,” Emerson said. “When we made him that offer, we knew there was a lot more in the tank.”
Walker proved himself adaptable. But over two NHL seasons and two calendar years, 2021 and 2022, he established himself as a survivor.
First, during an abjectly miserable 2021 campaign, Walker’s toiling was rewarded with a Matt Dumba slapshot to the face. Walker’s orbital bone was severely fractured, among other injuries and lacerations, requiring what was believed to be a two-hour surgical procedure to be extended to more than five hours.
While the injuries were frightening, Walker ultimately missed just nine contests. The following campaign, however, was another story.
In the sixth game of the following season, Walker became entangled with David Perron. Both players fell in a heap, twisting Walker’s leg awkwardly. He sustained torn anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments, costing him the campaign.
“A lot of players would have a difficult time with that. I think, with ‘Walks,’ what he went through as a player and how Bowling Green taught him how to persevere,” Emerson said. “Because he had a stable foundation, I think that really helped him.”
Walker would be monitored carefully early in 2022-23 but he played in 70 of 82 games and scored 13 points in what was mostly a third-pairing role. The Kings had the rare issue of being overstocked with right-handed-shooting defensemen, like Walker, and at last summer’s exit interviews, Walker acknowledged that he would likely be traded from the only organization he’d known.
Sure enough, Walker was shipped to Philly along with Cal Petersen, Helge Grans and draft assets in a three-way transaction that netted the Columbus Blue Jackets a reliable defenseman and the Kings some much-needed cap flexibility. But Walker has been more than just a salary dump for Philly, who has dressed him in each of their games. Walker has rewarded them with over 20 minutes of ice time a night, two short-handed goals and four points thus far, putting him on pace for career highs in goals and points.
“He’s been really good,” Flyers coach John Tortorella told reporters. “He’s been noticeable in that he’s probably one of our most aggressive defensemen in surfing, taking a chance as far as getting your gap very early, not waiting for them to cross the red line to get your gap.”
Walker said that he and Tortorella, a notoriously demanding and often gruff bench boss, had proven a solid fit for each other.
“Everybody knows what Torts is expecting out of you and that feeds into the way that I want to play,” Walker said. “I pride myself as being someone who is going to show up every day and work my very hardest, and, at the very least, that’s what he expects.”
Walker called his “fresh start” in the city of Brotherly Love “a great opportunity” to play a larger, more diverse role.
“When you’re playing those minutes, it’s easier to find your game, feel more confident and play well,” he said.
While the Kings have transitioned to a more competitive phase than they were in when Walker joined the organization, the Flyers are very much immersed in a re-tooling process. Walker, who will turn 29 on Nov. 13, may play himself into a second trade in less than a year. He knew that if he continued to excel, he could have value to a contender near the trade deadline.
“That’s something that you try to just put in the back of your mind, and go day-to-day and just worry about your game. That’s the situation that I’m in,” Walker said. “I’ll just take it in stride and whatever happens happens. We’ll work through it and hopefully the best comes out of it.”
For now, what’s scheduled to happen is a second meeting in a week’s time against his former friends and neighbors. In Philadelphia on Saturday, the Kings coasted to a 5-0 victory thanks to a superb performance from goalie Cam Talbot opposite another former King, Cal Petersen. The grudge match will take place next Saturday at Crypto.com Arena.
Walker often displays quiet but palpable sentimentality. He beams softly when talking about his loved ones. There’s little doubt that he carries a special fondness for Bowling Green, where he got the phone number he hopes to keep for life, and also for his first professional franchise.
“It’s just the relationships,” Walker said. “Everyone helped me through it but I also got to go through it with a bunch of guys and made some lifelong friendships. I’ll forever be grateful to the organization, to Blakey, Nelson Emerson and all those guys for giving me the opportunity.”
