The Edmonton Oilers’ window to win, led by Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, is shrinking, and as good as those two are, they need far more help around them than they’re currently getting. While GM Stan Bowman made some solid moves to help address the team’s depth and defensive issues at the trade deadline, it left many wanting more.
Edmonton’s roster is what it is for the rest of this 2025–26 season, and while much of the focus—as it should be—is on this group winning the Stanley Cup, one insider already has his eyes on what he forecasts to be a very interesting and big offseason for the Oilers.
David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period recently expressed this on the DFO Rundown, detailing more about a potential Darnell Nurse trade that was explored at the deadline, which could return to the forefront this summer.
“It’s going to be interesting for a lot of people because his name (Darnell Nurse) did pop up last week, throughout the week. I do believe they were doing their due diligence and having exploratory talks at the very least internally, and I know they spoke to one team as well about the possibility of a Darnell Nurse-type move. I don’t think, again, it got serious enough where they started to have that consideration. But, I’ve maintained this all season: I think the Oilers are going to have a very, very interesting and big offseason… because I think there are some pieces missing on that club that they will fill next summer, going into next season. I think they’re going to be very dangerous for what they would like to do in the offseason. But the other interesting element now is Darnell Nurse and his name that week being out there and what they do with him this summer. That’s definitely something I’m going to be keeping an eye or two on,”
The 31-year-old Nurse is, of course, in year four of the eight-year, $74 million extension he signed with the Oilers in 2021, which includes a full no-movement clause through the 2026-27 campaign.
Nurse’s $9.25 million cap hit certainly won’t be easy to move, though, even with his money on the books, Edmonton is slated to have close to $17 million in cap space this offseason with all of its core players locked in.
Because of that, Bowman will be equipped to be bold and, as Pagnotta said, do something big even if he can’t find a suitor for Nurse. And if he can, watch out — the Oilers could be in for multiple major moves.
Either way, Edmonton is about to start reaping the rewards of McDavid signing a bargain extension, so it’s imperative that they take full advantage of the short window they have these next few years.
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