The Darnell Nurse trade market has gone quiet Saturday, and insider Frank Seravalli says he knows part of the reason why.
According to Seravalli, teams that Edmonton GM Stan Bowman is counting on as trade partners are busy chasing other defensemen. Philadelphia is interested in Zachary Werenski, pending free agent John Carlson, and others.
That's the problem with shopping a $9,250,000 cap hit in a busy market. Everyone's already on the phone with someone else.
Nurse posted 7 goals and 24 points in 82 games this season for the Oilers, who finished 41-30-11, fourteenth overall. Solid enough, but not the kind of production that makes teams scramble to take on nearly $9.3 million.
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Edmonton allowed 269 goals this season. The blue line needs help, not another expensive exit.
Werenski, meanwhile, is having his name thrown around by multiple teams. He put up 22 goals and 81 points in 75 games for Columbus this season. A defenseman who scores at that rate doesn't come cheap: his cap hit sits at $9,583,333.
Flyers targeting both Werenski and Carlson as Nurse sits in limbo
Philadelphia finished 43-27-12 and went deep into the playoffs before losing to Carolina. GM Daniel Briere is clearly shopping for blue-line help.
Carlson is a pending free agent, which makes him a lower-cost play than a trade requiring picks or prospects. Werenski is a longer-term acquisition. Briere may not be able to do both.
But the fact that the Flyers are engaged on multiple fronts means they're not sitting by the phone waiting for Edmonton to call.
That's exactly the problem for Bowman. The Nurse market isn't dead, it's just competing with alternatives that teams find easier to stomach financially.
The next few days will tell the story. Either the market opens up, or Nurse heads into next season still in an Oilers uniform with his trade value a question mark.
Should the Oilers keep Darnell Nurse if they can't find a strong trade return?
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