Edmonton Oilers: How Darnell Nurse Improved

Edmonton Oilers defenceman Darnell Nurse had a lot to prove in just his sophomore year with the team. However, his time would be limited.

As a key part of the Oilers future on defence, Nurse has many expectations resting on his shoulders. Here’s how he stacked up this season.

Overall Impact

A broken foot would interrupt Nurse’s season, but he did make strides forward. Focusing more on taking better care of the puck and becoming more of an intimidating, physical presence, Nurse found his calling with the team.

Edmonton Oilers

As a bottom-pairing blueliner, the 22-year-old decided to take on a shutdown mentality and use his size and aggression to limit his opponent’s time and space. Not only that, but he worked on his maintaining puck possession and helping the Oilers control the speed of the game. He also fought and stood up for his teammates, further supporting the team.

Combining a tough mentality with a positive, determined attitude and shutdown style, Nurse stepped up and showed a lot of promise this season.

Stats

Through just 44 games this season, Nurse put up five goals and 11 points. His plus-minus was an even zero. He wasn’t much of an offensive force, but he could move the puck and also proved to win battles and spark his team with his physicality. The 6-foot-4, 220-pound defenceman finished with 107 hits as well, leaving us to only imagine how many hits he would have in a full year.

Defensively, Nurse stepped up in certain areas. He finished with 53 blocks, and also had 11 takeaways for 36 giveaways. However, he boasted a Corsi above 50 percent, and his relative Corsi of .1 was a huge improvement from the -5.8 he posted last year. Overall, he helped the team control the puck and used his size and physicality to drive his game forward.

Nurse also fought three times this season, but according to hockeyfights.com, he truly only won one of those battles.

In the playoffs, Nurse played in all 13 games. He posted two assists, as well as 36 hits and 13 blocks.

Next: Edmonton Oilers Free Agent Tracker: Justin Williams

Overall Grade: B

Nurse showed a lot of promise and much-improved numbers in the short time he got to play this season. However, there is still plenty of room for him to elevate his game and drive forward.