Player Discussion Darnell Nurse

[McDeathbyCheerios*]

The only thing I would say to this is how much is Nurse's struggles due to Klefbom missing nearly half the year?

It seemed like just as Klefbom was starting to turn the corner and become more comfortable handling the tough matchups and heavier minutes, his body broke.

IMO that's been a big reason why we're seeing Nurse stumble.

True but then Nurse has gotten less minutes and is playing stupid. Simple things too like foot positioning around our net. I think he accounts for over half our own goals this year.

Stupid pinches that directly relate to goals against.

Even while being a great skater he is constantly losing his man.

He needs to get sent down to the ahl and hopefully stays a whole year to 6 months and forces his way up. He is a guy that improves when he has something to work towards.

 

[Aceboogie]

I feel like I am walking into a Klefbom thread from last season and hearing the same arguments. Like jesus people expect the moon from a rookie D on a horrible team. Crazy how a rough 20 game stretch can change things

How long did it take Klefbom to turn the corner? sure as hell not 2 seasons

 

[ChaoticOrange]

True but then Nurse has gotten less minutes and is playing stupid. Simple things too like foot positioning around our net. I think he accounts for over half our own goals this year.

Stupid pinches that directly relate to goals against.

Even while being a great skater he is constantly losing his man.

He needs to get sent down to the ahl and hopefully stays a whole year to 6 months and forces his way up. He is a guy that improves when he has something to work towards.

Chiarelli made a comment this afternoon about how it's hard for him to properly evaluate some guys because they're being forced to play too high in the lineup because of injury.

To me he just might as well have held up a cardboard cutout of Darnell Nurse.

 

[nexttothemoon]

Some perspective...

Nurse GF/GA ratio this season... 42.5% vs teammates 44.8% while getting a 5.9% dzone push (29.4% ozone vs 35.3% dzone)

Hamonic GF/GA ratio this season... 48.2% vs teammates 53.8% while getting a 2.0% ozone push (32% ozone vs 30% dzone)


In short, yes Nurse hasn't been great this year but is playing tougher minutes (on a worse team)... and Hamonic has been **** this year while playing in his 6th year in the NHL vs Nurse in his rookie year.

Trade Nurse for Hamonic... **** off.

 

[Tyrolean]

Not overly impressed by him. Has physical skills but doesn't process the game properly a lot of the time. Time will tell, but I'd rather have drafted the Finn.

 

[SullivanT]

Hope the playoffs in the ahl does some good for the kid I have high hopes for him

 

[VainGretzky]

True but then Nurse has gotten less minutes and is playing stupid. Simple things too like foot positioning around our net. I think he accounts for over half our own goals this year.

Stupid pinches that directly relate to goals against.

Even while being a great skater he is constantly losing his man.

He needs to get sent down to the ahl and hopefully stays a whole year to 6 months and forces his way up. He is a guy that improves when he has something to work towards.

Yep skate always angled toward the net peewee taught no no's

 

[Hopelesslucicfan]

I can't wait until Nurse turns into the beast of a Dman I know he will be, and all the people giving up on him after a rookie season on a **** team paired with schultz and schultz #2 can eat your crow.

I just hope management isn't dumb enough to move him.

 

[Mr Positive]

I feel like I am walking into a Klefbom thread from last season and hearing the same arguments. Like jesus people expect the moon from a rookie D on a horrible team. Crazy how a rough 20 game stretch can change things

How long did it take Klefbom to turn the corner? sure as hell not 2 seasons

Klefbom played in the AHL though, but I agree that it's too early to start talking about Nurse's limits.

 

[MPStoEberletoHall*]

I feel like I am walking into a Klefbom thread from last season and hearing the same arguments. Like jesus people expect the moon from a rookie D on a horrible team. Crazy how a rough 20 game stretch can change things

How long did it take Klefbom to turn the corner? sure as hell not 2 seasons

Bingo

 

[Spawn]

I can't believe the Oilers have kept Nurse up all year. New management, new coaching staff, same garbage decisions playing d-men over their head too early in their career.

The frustrating thing is we can see how some proper development seems to have benefited lesser prospects like Davidson and Oesterle immensely. So why have they been so unwilling to send Nurse down a similar path. He should have been sent down after the all-star break once it became clear that his drop off in play wasn't just because he had needed a break.

 

[ChaoticOrange]

I can't believe the Oilers have kept Nurse up all year. New management, new coaching staff, same garbage decisions playing d-men over their head too early in their career.

The frustrating thing is we can see how some proper development seems to have benefited lesser prospects like Davidson and Oesterle immensely. So why have they been so unwilling to send Nurse down a similar path?

They're out of recalls and the other alternative is playing Nikitin?

 

[Spawn]

They're out of recalls and the other alternative is playing Nikitin?

It's been clear for 2 months now he can't play in this league at this stage of his development. My bump is more a criticism on how they've handled the player all year, not on what they can do now. It's too late for anything this season.

 

[ChaoticOrange]

It's been clear for 2 months now he can't play in this league at this stage of his development. My bump is more a criticism on how they've handled the player all year, not on what they can do now. It's too late for anything this season.

Nurse has had his ups and downs. Staples actually had a pretty good article detailing his roller coaster season - good first quarter, struggled 2nd quarter, rebounded 3rd quarter.

 

[doulos]

Oilers backed themselves into the mess with Nurse by commenting that the next time they brought him up they wanted it to be for good.

He's being ruined right before our eyes. Not enough offense to be a top guy and not good enough at the NHL level defensively. Everyone sees his mean streak and thinks "Oh my gosh, Pronger!" and overlooks the fact that he's been horrific most of the year.

 

[oil Leaks]

As of right now, he looks like a better skating Smid.

 

[Jimmi McJenkins]

As of right now, he looks like a better skating Smid.

No, he looks like an over burdened 21 year old in the NHL. Always impressive how hard and fast people want to throw kids under the bus.

 

[doulos]

No, he looks like an over burdened 21 year old in the NHL. Always impressive how hard and fast people want to throw kids under the bus.

He shouldn't be written off but the reality is he is playing like an AHLer, not an NHLer right now.

 

[Jimmi McJenkins]

He shouldn't be written off but the reality is he is playing like an AHLer, not an NHLer right now.

You will absolutely no argument from me, he looks overwhelmed and is struggling hard. Interesting that the Coaching staff is still running him out there.

Edit: I don't honestly fault them, just curious what the grand plan is there.

 

[Spawn]

Nurse has had his ups and downs. Staples actually had a pretty good article detailing his roller coaster season - good first quarter, struggled 2nd quarter, rebounded 3rd quarter.

Staple's article wasn't good. It was based around his ridiculously flawed scoring chance +/- that he's been trying to use for years but it has never gained any traction because it's biased garbage where he assigns plus or minus based on who he thinks was responsible for a scoring chance for/against.

Nurse has been in over his head for months. I don't know how anyone can defend what the Oilers have done with him. It's been a joke, and a disservice to the players development.

No, he looks like an over burdened 21 year old in the NHL. Always impressive how hard and fast people want to throw kids under the bus.

That's exactly what Smid was when he first got to Edmonton. I think that's kind of the point. The Oilers for years take these young high end prospects and throw them into the deep end without a life jacket and ask them not to drown.

 

[Replacement*]

One of the goals last night is textbook why Nurse shouldn't be in the NHL this year but instead should be having a learning/development year.

Talbot gives up a rebound and Nurse is staring at Talbot (faced the wrong way) instead of reading rebound and taking his man. Looks incredibly silly on the play. You don't watch the puck, you take the man. You see whats in the slot, not whats in the crease. Gotta let goalie handle that part.

 

[McTrashBoat]

One of the goals last night is textbook why Nurse shouldn't be in the NHL this year but instead should be having a learning/development year.

Talbot gives up a rebound and Nurse is staring at Talbot (faced the wrong way) instead of reading rebound and taking his man. Looks incredibly silly on the play. You don't watch the puck, you take the man. You see whats in the slot, not whats in the crease. Gotta let goalie handle that part.

From what I recall that puck went in and out of Talbot's glove, 99 times / 100 that puck doesn't land to his left

 

[Spawn]

One of the goals last night is textbook why Nurse shouldn't be in the NHL this year but instead should be having a learning/development year.

Talbot gives up a rebound and Nurse is staring at Talbot (faced the wrong way) instead of reading rebound and taking his man. Looks incredibly silly on the play. You don't watch the puck, you take the man. You see whats in the slot, not whats in the crease. Gotta let goalie handle that part.

Yup. To be fair, it was compounded by the fact that it was a terrible rebound for Talbot to give up. He should have smothered that puck. But it was an instance where Nurse is once again caught standing still watching instead of acting. If he covers the player like he should he prevents a goal. But he's paralyzed out there in front of the net and makes that exact same mistake basically every game. Sometimes multiple times a game.

I don't even really mean it as a criticism of Nurse... he's just not an NHL caliber player right now, and hasn't been since December. It's much more a criticism on how the Oilers have handled him.

 

[Replacement*]

From what I recall that puck went in and out of Talbot's glove, 99 times / 100 that puck doesn't land to his left

Fair point. I also think the shot might have been deflected thus Talbot having problems with it. Still don't think Nurse should be staring at Talbot on the play. He's there to look after traffic.

 

[missinthejets]

One of the goals last night is textbook why Nurse shouldn't be in the NHL this year but instead should be having a learning/development year.

Talbot gives up a rebound and Nurse is staring at Talbot (faced the wrong way) instead of reading rebound and taking his man. Looks incredibly silly on the play. You don't watch the puck, you take the man. You see whats in the slot, not whats in the crease. Gotta let goalie handle that part.

I knew people would be all over Nurse for that last night but come on, there's two guys and only Nurse there, he was watching the guy immediately in front of the net, who could have expected Talbot to give up that rebound he did? Nurse was the only guy back having to watch 2 people, I think he picked the more dangerous guy because you'd expect a rebound to land in front of the net not kick out to the side.