Edmonton Oilers Trying Position Change With Struggling Defenceman Darnell Nurse
The Edmonton Oilers have been shuffling their defence pairs much more than usual this season, and tonight, they may try a big change with Darnell Nurse.
The Oilers are at practice today with Darnell Nurse on the right side of the second pair. Nurse will be paired with Travis Dermott on the left side, and Troy Stecher playing the third pair with Brett Kulak. Ty Emberson will be a healthy scratch.
Nurse has been a topic of conversation for some time now, as he's struggled to live up to his $9.25M salary. Nurse struggled brutally towards the end of last season, setting the record for the worst plus minus in playoff history. This year it's been slightly better, and hopefully this position change may actually benefit him as well.
According to Kurt Leavins in the Edmonton Journal recently, Nurse was playing through some significant injuries towards the end of last season - which could've been a reason he was historically bad. This year he's already begun playing with more of a physical edge and is posting better defensive results, so there are signs of improvement in his game.
The Oilers need something more from Darnell Nurse. A Stanley Cup Contending team can't afford to overpay players so significantly, but Edmonton isn't going to be getting out of the Nurse deal. Seeing some significant improvements is a big step, and hopefully it's able to continue this season, and perhaps on the right side of the ice. There's also a real concern that he'll struggle even more to clear the puck on his backhand, which would be catastrophic.
It should be a priority for the Oilers this season to really work on Nurse's game, and this experiment in the lineup tonight is a sign they're doing so. We'll have to see how it turns out tonight at home against the Carolina Hurricanes.
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