Darnell Nurse has the worst contract in the NHL
Darnell Nurse is by far one of the more frustrating players on the Edmonton Oilers.
Although Darnell manages to show flashes of brilliance at times, he is seemingly always at the wrong place at the wrong time. When analyzing his play through the course of the 2023-24 NHL season, Nurse fell victim to unfortunate bounces and costly turnovers resulting in goals for the opposition.
With that being said, The Athletic recently published an article breaking down some of the worst contracts in the NHL, and it comes to no surprise that Darnell Nurse has made the list.
Based on The Athletic's model, Luszczyszyn writes that Nurse's annual deal should be worth $5.9 million rather than the $9.25 million he currently takes home every season. This difference becomes even more alarming, with the acknowledgement that the calculation doesn't take into account playoff data.
That's right -- if you did include playoff data from this past season, the 2013 seventh overall draft pick's annual salary worth would be even lower than $5.9 million. His play during the Oilers' run to the Stanley Cup Final was horrendous, highlighted (or should that be lowlighted) by tying with Derek Ryan and Vincent Desharnais for a team-worst -9 rating. Although Darnell is rated to have one of the worst NHL contracts, there is some upside to having him on the Oilers. According to Paul Taylor from Oil on Whyte, Nurse possesses a solid combination of talent, durability and physicality. He's good for around 40 points per season, doesn't really suffer serious injuries, and is usually at or around the top on the team in blocks and hits.
Nurse will be looking for a big bounce-back season during the 2024-25 campaign. Although his contract makes Oilers enthusiasts cringe, there is still time for Nurse to prove his overall worth to the team.
Source: Oil on Whyte
Darnell Nurse quite rightly ranked among Top-10 worst NHL contracts
| POLL |
Does Darnell Nurse have a terrible contract? |
| Yes | 194 | 80.5 % |
| No | 47 | 19.5 % |
| List of polls |
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Previously on Oilers Insider
