NHL TRADE: Darnell Nurse Expands Trade List, Dealt To West Coast

The Edmonton Oilers have finally been able to move on from Darnell Nurse. Word came in on Wednesday afternoon from Elliotte Friedman that the long-time Oilers defenseman had agreed to expand his list of trade destinations, with West Coast teams reportedly being added. A trade with the San Jose Sharks was then executed.

🔄 The Sharks acquire Darnell Nurse from the Oilers.

— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) July 1, 2026

A deal with the San Jose Sharks is done, and Shakir Mukhamadullin is coming back to Edmonton along with prospect Zach Sharp. 

There is no salary retention by Edmonton, per David Pagnotta. The Oilers are now up to $15.8 million in cap space. 

Nurse, with a full no-move clause, had previously limited his list of teams that he would waive for to the Pittsburgh Penguins, Philadelphia Flyers, and Boston Bruins. 

Nurse confirms that #SJSharks weren't on his initial 3-5 team trade list, but as he did more research about where to go next, people keeping telling him about San Jose, "You’d be crazy not to go there."

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) July 1, 2026

He admitted that he added the Sharks to his list after doing more research, and people telling him, "You’d be crazy not to go there."

Now, the Oil are finally able to move on from the veteran d-man and his $9.25 million cap hit that has another four years to run.

Sharks are acquiring Darnell Nurse from Edmonton at his full $9.25M cap hit

— David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) July 1, 2026

In Mukhamadullin, they pick up a much younger and cheaper blueliner. The 24-year-old is a restricted free agent, coming off a $1M salary. The 6'4" d-man is still a little raw and missed plenty of time due to injuries the past couple of years. He had 12 points in 50 games this season, playing over 17 minutes per night. He played only 30 games in the NHL the season before.