On Tuesday, before the Oilers host the Ottawa Senators, Nurse took a different approach.
“It’s 61 games in, and I’m minus-12 and have 20 points. I’m not happy about that at all,” Nurse told reporters after the morning skate.
“With that said, if we’re going to reach the goal we want to reach, I have to step up for sure, and there’s a lot of hockey to be played. I think that’s the excitement and the opportunity and the accountability. I owe that to the guys in the room. That’s it. No one else. Showing up each and every day and giving what I have, and enjoying it.”
“The accountability, I owe that to those guys in the room.”
Darnell Nurse, when asked about his performance recently. #LetsGoOilers
As the Oilers lost two of the three games on the California road trip, Nurse struggled in defensive-zone coverage in Anaheim and San Jose. He was a minus-3 in Anaheim and minus-1 in San Jose, with an assist. He and the team played much better as they demolished Los Angeles. Nurse was plus-3 with an assist as well.
Nurse was the centre of attention in San Jose, just hours after his wife gave birth to his third child. He asked a question about whether he fought the game after the Sharks’ loss, saying, “good analysis.”
It was the latest example of the Oilers’ core expressing frustration. As Nurse points out, winning is fun, but they need to find it playing the right way.
“We’ve shown in stretches and areas throughout the season that when we check, we play really good hockey,” said Nurse.
“Our group has it. Individually, we all feel we have it. For me, it’s going out there and being hard to play against. Having fun on that side of the ice is going to help our group. We’re excited about the last 21 games; there is a lot of hockey to be played.”
The Oilers are getting help on the blue line in the form of shutdown piece Connor Murphy. He won’t be ready to join the team just yet, but he is a 32-year-old veteran who has played 800 NHL games.
Whether he’ll play with Nurse when he arrives, remains to be seen.
“Definitely is a really good component to our group, [he’s] steady back there, hard to play against. So is it welcome when it’s a guy kill some penalties and do something that’s of the tough stuff.”
Michael Menzies is an Oilersnation columnist and has been the play-by-play voice of the Bonnyville Pontiacs in the AJHL since 2019. With seven years news experience as the Editor-at-Large of Lakeland Connect in Bonnyville, he also collects vinyl, books, and stomach issues.
PRESENTED BY THE DAILY FACEOFF TRADE DEADLINE SPECIAL
The 2026 Trade Deadline Special is going LIVE March 6th. Join the Daily Faceoff crew on Friday, March 6th from 9 AM-1:30 PM MT for wall-to-wall coverage of every single move as it happens. Get instant reaction, expert analysis, and exclusive insights from special guests throughout the day. Tune in LIVE on the Daily Faceoff YouTube channel and don’t miss a second of deadline day chaos.