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Darnell Nurse on the Oilers trade block

The Edmonton Oilers have an important offseason ahead of them as GM Stan Bowman looks to strengthen this team in order to go on a longer playoff run next season after a disappointing showing in this years postseason.

There will almost certainly be significant roster turnover in Alberta over the summer after an unacceptable first round performance versus the Anaheim Ducks. With two years remaining on Connor McDavid’s deal, the Oilers cannot afford to squander this opportunity.

One player whose future in Edmonton is under question is defenseman Darnell Nurse. The 31 year old Canadian has struggled in recent seasons for the club and carries with him a rich $9.25 million contract that takes up much of the squad’s salary cap space.

Edmonton Has Tried to Move on from Darnell Nurse

The Oilers have reportedly tried to trade Nurse. Via insider David Pagnotta on Oilersnation Everyday: “They offered him (Darnell Nurse) up to at least one team, that team said no; Edmonton spoke to Toronto ahead of the deadline to try to make that happen.”

This is not a surprise considering how much Nurse’s game has dropped off in play of late as his prime days have left him. When taking into account how pricey his deal is, the results on the ice have not been good enough to warrant that contract. Nurse struggled vs the Ducks as he went pointless in the six game series.

Many defenseman on the team have passed Nurse in the depth chart pecking order. The rise of Evan Bouchard in particular makes him expendable. Bouchard has established himself as one of the top defenseman in the game with his ability to produce from the backend.

Nurse’s 25-26 regular season left a lot to be desired as well. In 82 games, he registered seven goals and 17 assists for 24 points. Over the course of his 798 game career with Edmonton, Nurse has amassed 88 goals and 236 assists for 324 points. In his postseason career, he has recorded seven goals and 22 assists for 29 points.

Oilers Could Use More Salary Cap Flexibility

While the Oilers have failed to move on from this Nurse contract thus far, it is reasonable to expect them to continue to try to find a suitor. This Nurse deal coming off the teams books would open up space for the club to work with in respects to adding depth to this group.

The Oilers have very little space available when it comes to salary cap room at the moment. A Nurse move would free up money they could use in a variety of ways. Would they use it to make a needed upgrade in net? Or would they use it to give their franchise players of McDavid and Leon Draisaitl more weapons to utilize up front?

Edmonton must use all options at their disposal moving forward. They are at a breaking point to where they cannot keep letting these playoff setbacks stack up. If this team can’t bring home a Stanley Cup, questions will persist regarding McDavid’s future with the Oilers.