“No, I wouldn’t come to camp without a contract, but hopefully we get something done before camp so I can be out there (on the) first day. That’s the goal,” Nurse told reporters, via Sportsnet.
Yikes.
Darnell Nurse is part of a very talented group of RFAs that haven’t signed with their teams yet. Other members of that group include William Nylander (TOR), Shea Theodore (VGK), and Josh Morrissey (WPG).
Kurt Leavins from the Cult of Hockey is pretty certain that a deal is about to be struck given that Nurse is in Edmonton working out with his teammates at the informal workouts going on right now but each and every day that passes, would it not be prudent to consider the possibility of the Edmonton Oilers trading Darnell Nurse?
Look, from the information that I’ve been passed, this is on Anton Thun, Nurse’s agent. Nurse would love to sign tomorrow but he’s getting told to wait. That’s fair given Chiarelli’s negotiation history and Nurse’s results from last season. He should be getting paid more and Chiarelli painted himself into this corner too.
That said, the Oilers signed a few extra left-shot defensemen this summer. Not that they would be replacements for Nurse, but the Oilers depth on the left side isn’t so poor that they couldn’t survive without Nurse.
Let’s make it clear here, I do NOT want the Oilers to trade Darnell Nurse. I think it would be a waste of development dollars and time if they traded him. At the moment, he forms a very formidable trio with Oscar Klefbom and Adam Larsson that I’d like to see run wild on the NHL for the next half decade or so. He’s exactly the kind of dman I love too.
I would like to see him move on from his agent though. That guy sounds like a pain in the ass.
But if we’re going to bring up trading Nurse, we should talk about returns. What would it take for you to move on from him? What do the Oilers need?
- A right-shot D to run the PP
- A scoring winger
For me, William Nylander would make it easier to let Darnell Nurse go but that’s never going to happen.
- Tyler Myers (WPG) – Stauffer brought him up on Oilers Now yesterday.
- Jacob Trouba (WPG) – Big mean defender with a right-shot cannon.
- Max Pacioretty (MTL) – Bottom line, he scores goals.
- Tyson Barrie (COL) – Pricey but gets the job done offensively.
- Justin Faulk (CAR) – Poor man’s Barrie these days.
- Torey Krug (BOS) – Injuries have crept up but he racks up the points.
- Brandon Carlo (BOS) – Little offensive upside but young, big, and RH’d.
- Erik Karlsson (OTT) – HIGHLY unlikely…
- Colton Payko (STL) – Local boy who has Pronger-like abilities. NOT PRONGER!
- Josh Anderson (CBJ) – Emerging power forward that scores goals on the frequent.
- Radko Gudas (PHI) – Big shot, massive pain in the ass defensively and Philly have some youngsters on the rise.
- Patric Hornqvist (PIT) – Seemed to have issues with teammates in the playoffs last year. Is he the odd man out in the Steel City?
I’m not sure. Those are just a few names to garner up some water cooler banter. I think if we look hard enough we could find reasons with every one of those players as to why the Oilers couldn’t acquire them IF they decided to move Darnell Nurse. Salary caps, defensive depth, etc.
We could also find other options for the Oilers that are a bit more realistic but I’m just throwing a quick blog out there to get the conversation going.
But honestly, do we really think that Nurse will hold out over a few hundred thousand? I don’t. I think a deal will be done right before training camp and it’ll be enough of a talking point that it’ll enrage the Anti-Chia crowd AND the Pro-Chia crowd.
I can’t wait…
What do you think? Leave your comments below!
