This season, the Edmonton Oilers failed. Management failed to build an adequate team around Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, and the players failed to be more than what McDavid termed an average team.
Now, the Pittsburgh Penguins may play a part in the Oilers’ offseason turmoil, as Edmonton defenseman Darnell Nurse has requested a trade, and there is an unverified report that the Penguins are on his short list of teams.
Pittsburgh Hockey Now is attempting to verify the report but has not yet been able to confirm or deny it.
Nurse, 31, is signed for four more years with a hefty $9.25 million salary cap, and is on his way out for several reasons, including the heavy cap hit. Also, there is long-running criticism of Nurse’s consistency, and his occasional falters can be significant.
Sportsnet beat writer Mark Spector bluntly labeled Nurse as “lacking hockey sense” and categorized him as a No. 4 or 5 defenseman, and such a role generally costs well less than $9.25 million.
However, the defenseman is 6-foot-4, 215 pounds, skates well, can move the puck and can play a physical game, though intermittently. At his best, he is a rare combination of skills and contributions, yet the oscillating quality of his game creates doubts as to his trade value.
Naturally, there is sweeping debate if Nurse has trade value or if Edmonton will need to include additional assets to facilitate the requested trade.
On the surface, a Penguins trade for Nurse has some connections and congruence. First, the Penguins have an opening on the left side of their defense and could use additional physicality on the backside. Nurse’s speed and puck movement also fit general manager Kyle Dubas’s preferred mold for a defenseman.
Digging deeper, Dubas and Nurse have a deep connection. Nurse was one of Dubas’s players when Dubas was the GM of the Soo Greyhounds. That connection has historically carried just a little bit of extra weight.
Nurse was also a part of the Edmonton organization and made his NHL debut under now Penguins assistant coach Todd Nelson.
But does a trade make sense? Unlikely, but not implausible.
First, Edmonton needs salary cap space, and as much of it as possible. Second, Edmonton needs talent both to replace Nurse in the lineup, but also wingers to put the puck in the net. In fact, a scoring winger under contract for more than a year would be a blessing that Edmonton has been unable to secure since signing Zach Hyman as a free agent six years ago.
And a goalie. Desperately so.
It is in meeting the Oilers’ needs that the Penguins are uniquely qualified. Last summer, it is believed that Edmonton made a better offer for goalie Arturs Silovs, but the Vancouver Canucks did not want to trade Silovs within the Pacific Division.
From the Penguins’ end, Nurse and his four years remaining do not serve the greater purpose of winning while simultaneously building. So, Edmonton will have to sweeten the pot.
Would Dubas accept more draft picks to take on a player he doesn’t really need? Such a sweetener would seem unlikely, and Edmonton doesn’t have a first-round pick until at least 2028, though their 2027 pick is owned with a top 12 protected clause by the Chicago Blackhawks, and the Penguins are trying to move some of their second-round picks rather than acquire more.
Complicating it further, Edmonton has few expendable assets.
It would seem very unlikely that Dubas could pry 22-year-old winger Matthew Savoie from Edmonton in the deal, nor could Edmonton raise the assets to also include Silovs. In a silly hypothetical world in which Silovs would be included, the Penguins could return Stuart Skinner, but such is the stuff of wild “what ifs” more suited for social media.
No, the most basic would first include an acknowledgement of Nurse’s lopsided contract, which would open the door to including the Penguins’ worst contract, defenseman Ryan Graves, who is signed for three more years with a $4.5 million cap hit.
If Edmonton would accept Graves, then the financial aspect is in proper proportion, and Edmonton could then ask for something in return. Perhaps a B-level prospect and an expendable part to fill one of the many open spots on the Edmonton roster.
Overall, it would seem Edmonton will ask for more than the Penguins should be willing to give, but if Dubas identifies Nurse as a helpful addition, there are paths to a deal, and the addition of Nurse would support the addition of a later 20s impact player by solidifying an open spot with a talented, albeit sometimes maddening, player.
And the Penguins should be used to relying on sometimes maddening defensemen.
Tags: darnell nurse Penguins Trade Pittsburgh Penguins
Categorized:Penguins Trade Talk