On June 4, news broke that a veteran player could be heading for splitsville with his team.
No, not Dylan Larkin and the Detroit Red Wings.
A few hours before Sportsnet reported that Larkin wanted out, the outlet reported on June 4 that all signs pointed to defenseman Darnell Nurse and the Edmonton Oilers heading for a breakup. The report stated that Oilers general manager Stan Bowman was expected to speak with Nurse in the coming days “about his wishes” and that the team would like to trade Nurse.
Unlike Larkin’s impending divorce, this one sounds a bit more amicable, with Sportsnet adding Thursday that Nurse has officially requested a trade. League sources have told The Inquirer there is not only mutual interest, but the Flyers are on a short list Nurse sent the Oilers.
But does it make sense for the Flyers to acquire the blueliner, who is a nephew of ex-Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb? Let’s dissect.
The request by Nurse comes as he enters Year 5 of an eight-year deal with a no-movement clause for one more season, meaning he cannot be traded, sent to the minors, or waived without approval. The contract shifts to a modified no-trade clause — he can submit a list of 10 teams to which he can be traded — on July 1, 2027.
That’s not the biggest concern, as he’s already said he wants to move out of Alberta. The issue is that the contract has a hefty cap hit of $9.25 million despite Nurse being on the middle pair. However, the contract was heavily front-loaded so he’s only owed $29.6 million the rest of the way. Either way, the consensus is that Edmonton would have to eat some of the money to facilitate a trade.
And it’s a large contract for someone who doesn’t play top minutes. This past season, Nurse had seven goals, 24 points, and blocked the ninth-most shots in the NHL (167) in 82 games. He had his worst plus-minus (minus-12) since 2015-16 and the most penalty minutes in his career (104) while averaging his fewest minutes since his third season in the NHL at just under 21 minutes.
His 164 shots on goal during the regular season tied for 20th among NHL defensemen, and, among all skaters, would have been the fourth-most on the Flyers. Could that be intriguing to the Flyers, who averaged 24.6 shots across 10 playoff games and finished the regular season at No. 28 (25.5)? Coach Rick Tocchet often brought up the need for more shots on goal from his defensemen, coupled with guys getting to the front to set screens or tip shots.
There are pluses to Nurse’s game, including the fact that he has played in the Stanley Cup Final multiple times, which no one on the roster has done. Having a veteran presence, of someone who has gone that far, could provide a boost when they are pushing in the postseason. Still, the veteran of 798 NHL games does have some warts, like miscues and misreads.
Read more BalletX’s unveils its 2026-27 season, including a new ballet set in Prohibition-era Philadelphia
An intriguing thing is that general manager Danny Brière told The Inquirer at the NHL scouting combine that the Flyers probably are past signing a veteran to mentor the defensive corps.
“If there’s a high-end defenseman that can help us, we’ll have to look at that, he said. ”It might be time now to give our young guys the chance to see if they can step into those roles, from David Jiříček, Emil Andrae, [Oliver] Bonk, Ty Murchison, Hunter McDonald. I think those guys have probably earned the right to get a look, and hopefully we can fill that all with our younger guys from within.”
Does acquiring Nurse, or at least talking of acquiring Nurse, hint that there is another move pending? The Flyers need to make room for Jiříček, who will no longer be waiver-exempt in 2026-27. Brière also mentioned that “a high-end power-play quarterback on defense” is a need. Additionally, the team must make room to stay under the cap.
Could Rasmus Ristolainen, who has been the subject of trade rumors for years, finally be on the move?
“Yeah, I mean, we’re going to look into it. I think we have to,” Brière said in Buffalo when asked if the Finn would be part of trade chatter again. “That’s our duty as the organization, to explore what’s out there and see if there’s something that makes sense or not. But he was so good down the stretch for us, played on the top pairing with Travis Sanheim, how good he was at the Olympics, how good he was in the playoffs. So he’s a big asset.
“As we talk about expectations, you trade a guy like Rasmus, and it weakens the team. So if we do it, it’s going to have to make sense for the future. It certainly wouldn’t be ideal for taking a step forward next season if we do trade him, but we have to explore everything that’s out there.”
With Brière’s words in mind, if the team traded Ristolainen and brought in Nurse — maybe to play with Jamie Drysdale and reunite Travis Sanheim and Cam York — might the Flyers view it as a pretty clean swap?
Read more Herr’s debuts three new limited-time flavors, inspired by Philly