Edmonton Oilers reportedly open to moving out top d-man this summer, but he isn't

Yahoo

a day ago

This in from Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, news that the Edmonton Oilers asked some players with No Movement Clauses, including veteran d-man Darnell Nurse, if they were open to waiving them and accepting a trade this summer.
This comes even as Nurse was the top d-man for the Oilers when it came to even strength ice-time in the playoffs, the go-to guy in the eyes of d-man coach Paul Coffey.
Said Friedman: 'I think basically Edmonton went to a check with all their guys who had no trade clauses, who they would want to move and say, 'Okay, how many of you are willing to go places?' And (Viktor) Arvidson said he was, so he went. But, you know, Nurse, I don't think he wants to go anywhere. (Adam) Henrique, I'm not convinced he wants to go anywhere. So that's kind of where it ended up. They made it clear they liked being part of something where they can win, and they decided to stay, as is their right.'
1. Friedman is likely the NHL's top insider. If he says he thinks that this happened with Nurse, I'll go with that.
It's significant because it's the first credible news we've heard about the Oilers having any interest in moving out Nurse in a trade.
Nurse has five years left on a deal that pays him $9.25 million per year. He's got a full no-movement clause now, which changes to a no-trade clause in the final three years of his contract.
2. Nurse had likely his single best season as an NHL d-man in the 2024-25 regular season, playing smart, tough, sound two-way hockey.
But then he cratered in the playoffs. Once again he leaked goals and Grade A shots against. Worse, it was the fourth season in a row where Nurse's playoff performance had been significantly worse than his regular season play.
What's that all about? Why such a consistent drop in performance in the playoffs? If Nurse and Oilers can't figure it out, they're going to struggle to win a Cup, at least given the minutes that Nurse plays and the size of his contract.
3. Would there be a market for Nurse? Why not, especially given that the Florida Panthers won the Cup with a brutally aggressive style of play. At his best, Nurse is a brutally aggressive defender who moves the puck fast and true, and who defends in sound fashion. Nurse consistently played that kind of hockey during the 2024-25 regular season, so much so that I had high hopes he'd do the same in the playoffs. But not to be.
4. It's the second year in a row the Oilers have struggled to find a d-man partner who works with Nurse in the playoffs, with many of those who have tried and failed getting axed from the team or leaving Edmonton.
That list includes Cody Ceci, Vincent Desharnais and Philip Broberg last year, plus John Klingberg this year. Brett Kulak tried and failed to succeed with Nurse in the playoffs both this year and last. Troy Stecher had some success with Nurse against VGK and Dallas, but the pairing crumpled against Florida, where Nurse's passing game disintegrated into a series of icings, as hockey commentator Dimitri Filipovic documented.
5. Can Nurse bring his strong regular season performance to the playoffs in 2026. I don't see why not, but it's often said in Oil Country: 'Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.'
I can see why the Oilers would ask Nurse to waive no-movement clause. It might well be unwelcome for Nurse to face this, but it's a fair response to his playoff performances, and it's a signal for him to figure out what's going on and how he can fix it. Perhaps this jolt from management will provide Nurse with the right push to finally get to the bottom of his playoff woes and to figure out how he get it right on hockey's biggest stage.