Nathan Walker, the only Australian to play in the National Hockey League (NHL), has inked a new 2-year contract extension with the St. Louis Blues this week, seeing his future secured until the end of the 2026-27 NHL season.
The extension, worth $1.775M ($2.69M AUD), will extend his NHL tenure to 10 years – more than double the average NHL tenure of 4-5 years. It is a just reward for the feisty Aussie who put up a series of career-highs during the Blues’ 2024-25 campaign, which ultimately ended in playoff heartache. Featuring in 73 regular season games, Walker tallied 16 points, scoring eight times. In addition to finding his way onto the scoresheet, he lead the team with 63 penalty minutes and 281 hits, providing a physical presence on the ice despite his diminutive size.
Walker also shared the team lead with three goals in the Blues’ first-round series against the Winnipeg Jets, which ended in a Game 7 double-overtime loss.
Since making his historic NHL debut with the Washington Capitals in 2017-18, Walker has now featured in 229 regular season games, scoring 28 goals and tallying 56 points. His 12 career playoff games have netted three goals and two assists, and he was a member of the 2017-18 Stanley Cup winning Washington Capitals.
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