Oilers Want To Free Up $9.25 Million With Nurse Trade. Can They Spend It Wisely?
The Edmonton Oilers are reportedly actively working to convince Darnell Nurse to waive his no-movement clause and accept a trade.
The latest word from Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman and Mark Spector is Nurse has asked for a trade and feels it's time to move on. The deal, it seems, could be closer to happening than anyone expected a week ago.
As serviceable as he is, and as much as he'd be a great member of the roster on a cheaper contract, moving Nurse's $9.25-million cap hit is probably the right call for a franchise in desperate need of a reset after a disappointing season.
If the Oilers can find someone to take on his deal, that money could go a long way to filling holes in goal, in the top six and on defense with a less expensive replacement.
Oilers Have An Extremely Busy Time Trying To Avoid Another Step Back
Edmonton Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse's future with the team has come into question, but that's one of many challenges GM Stan Bowman must face as they try to win a Stanley Cup.
The summer of 2024 was a reminder of what happens when you overlook your own players to sign guys quickly on July 1.
The Oilers signed Viktor Arvidsson and Jeff Skinner that off-season, and there was early excitement about what the additions could mean. But those signings meant they couldn't retain Dylan Holloway or Philip Broberg when offer sheets came in from the St. Louis Blues.
It stung to lose both players, and to make matters worse, Skinner and Arvidsson were largely invisible when it mattered most. Skinner wasn't brought back, eventually signing with the San Jose Sharks. Arvidsson also went out the door in a trade to the Bruins.
When the smoke cleared, the Oilers didn't have Holloway, Broberg, Arvidsson or Skinner. Those departures don't even include Ryan McLeod, who was traded to the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for Matt Savoie and then put up back-to-back 50-point campaigns.
This past fall, Edmonton received a gift from superstar Connor McDavid. He signed a two-year team-friendly extension – the motivation being that if he discounted his superstar rate, the Oilers could spend in other areas and improve the team.
Earlier in the off-season, however, one of the first actions the team did was sign Andrew Mangiapane to a two-year deal at $3.6 million annually.
Despite having only one good season with the Calgary Flames, Mangiapane had shown more often than not he wasn't worth that kind of investment, and as a reclamation project, he might not be worth taking the swing.
He wasn't, and Edmonton traded him to the Chicago Blackhawks, along with a 2027 first-round pick, in exchange for forwards Jason Dickinson and Colton Dach. Dach will be sticking around, but Dickinson might not.
Everybody Wants Darnell Nurse Gone, But Who Exactly Is Taking Him?
It's become the easiest offseason move to suggest in Edmonton. From debates online and on sports radio, it's one that plenty of frustrated fans have already made up in their minds.
That Leads Us To The Nurse Trade
The Nurse trade, if it happens, creates genuine flexibility.
A $9.25 million salary is real money – freeing it would be enough to address the crease, add a legitimate right-shot defenseman and shore up the depth that has recently let this team down in the playoffs.
The blueprint for spending it wisely isn't complicated, but in the wrong hands, having that kind of money to spend could lead to more problems.
The Oilers have been in win-now mode for half a decade, and that urgency has led them to take risks that haven't paid off.
Darnell Nurse may be on his way out. The question worth asking is whether the people making the next move have learned anything from the moves that made this one necessary.
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This story was originally published June 11, 2026 at 1:59 PM.