Oilers coach Mike Babcock called the Darnell Nurse trade a "pretty good deal by Stan" in a media scrum.
He was talking about GM Stan Bowman's July move, which sent Nurse out and brought Shakir Mukhamadullin in. It also cleared the cap space Edmonton used to sign Ryan Shea to a five-year contract. Nurse waived his no-movement clause to make it happen.
The comments came after Babcock was asked about the Mukhamadullin and Ty Emberson pairing. He said he's satisfied with it because "they're not in the (negative game film) highlights." He also admitted Mukhamadullin had a pinch the other night that "you never want to see in your whole life."
Then he turned to the trade. Babcock said that trading a real good man and a real part of the team is never easy, but that Edmonton got fortunate with what came back. "Really, in the end, we got Shea and we got Shak," he said. "Pretty good deal by Stan, I'd say."
He added: "that's nothing against Nursie, but we got two-for-one."
The Oilers are 14-3-3 and first in the NHL, and they beat the Flyers 3-2 in overtime last night. Tristan Jarry made 30 saves, and Shea logged 23:18 on the blue line.
Nurse's start in San Jose gives Babcock some ammunition
The other side of the trade is not pretty so far. Nurse has one goal and one assist in 20 games for the Sharks and sits at -5.
His pairing with Michael Kesselring, a former Oilers draft pick, has been outscored 12-3 at 5-on-5 over 249 minutes. Kesselring is -9 through 21 games. San Jose's coaches clearly have a problem to solve on that pair.
Edmonton has its own questions on defense. Mukhamadullin has one goal in 15 games and is -4, so Babcock's praise leans more on the contract math than on the numbers. Shea has five points in 20 games and is -1.
The money side is easier to defend. Moving Nurse's $9.25 million cap hit, which runs through 2029-30, without retaining a dollar is a win for Bowman. That flexibility is why Shea is in Edmonton at all.
Babcock is right to call it a good trade. But the Oilers haven't had to pay for the decision yet, and defensive depth gets tested hard once the games tighten up in the spring.
Edmonton's next test is Saturday, when the Oilers visit the Maple Leafs. Babcock also gave an injury update on Frederik Andersen and Matthew Savoie this week. Andersen is listed as out until at least Jan. 9.
This article was written with the help of artificial intelligence, based on public reports and official sources.
Who got the better end of the Darnell Nurse trade?
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