Report: 4 Teams In Trade Talks for Oilers' Darnell Nurse
The Edmonton Oilers are dealing with a trade request from veteran defenceman Darnell Nurse, and turns out, there's a market for him that's heating up in a big way.
Oilers general manager Stan Bowman has been working the phones trying to find a destination Nurse is open to moving to, as the Oilers' blueliner has a full no-movement clause until next July, when his trade clause changes to a 10-team no-trade list. Both the player and the organization have agreed that now is the time for a change of scenery, and a deal is expected before July 1. Nurse is signed for four more seasons at $9.25 million AAV.
Sportsnet's Ryan Dixon recently published an article on the latest on Nurse trade talks, and sees four teams as prime trade destinations for the 31-year-old. Dixon feels the Pittsburgh Penguins, Boston Bruins, Winnipeg Jets, and San Jose Sharks will be down to the wire to facilitate the deal.
You always look for pre-existing connections in these cases, and Nurse played for Pens GM Kyle Dubas when the latter was general manager of the OHL’s Soo Greyhounds in the first half of the 2010s....
Nurse for Mason Lohrei? The latter has one year left on his deal, and his name popped up in trade speculation for much of next year. A swap like that would give Edmonton another big body back, and the Oilers could determine if they like what they see with one season left on the 25-year-old Lohrei’s contract before he becomes a UFA....
We wondered about Winnipeg when determining landing spots for another defenceman who’s been a staple with a Canadian club, Morgan Rielly. The logic is basically this: if the Jets can’t find a dream solution for their 2C hole, maybe you double down on defence and acquire Nurse as an over-qualified third-pair guy. He could slot in beside promising youngster Elias Salomonsson, a right-shot defenceman who’ll likely miss a bit of time at the start of the year due to shoulder surgery.
San Jose has just two defencemen under contract for next season — Dmitry Orlov and Sam Dickinson — who played at least 70 contests for the squad this past year. Even with some big extensions on the horizon for the likes of Macklin Celebrini and Will Smith, San Jose could squeeze in Nurse on a reduced cap hit.
It's only a matter of time before Nurse gets moved, as the Oilers are going to look very different next season, on and off the ice. The NHL has cleared Mike Babcock of any wrong doing with the Columbus Blue Jackets, clearing the way for Babcock to take over behind the Oilers bench. With, or without Nurse.
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