The Edmonton Oilers have an important offseason ahead of them. Things started this past weekend with the 2026 NHL Draft. While the Toronto Maple Leafs walked away with the best player from the draft, the Oilers largely stuck to their draft selections. This transpired despite the trade rumors surrounding Sebastian Cossa and Darnell Nurse. There have been some big trades already announced in the past week. Some of those trades have involved the likes of the Philadelphia Flyers, Anaheim Ducks, St. Louis Blues, and the Buffalo Sabres.
Of course, the Oilers face a few issues with their roster. For starters, the Nurse trade request (as first reported by Elliotte Friedman and Mark Spector) and the need to acquire a goaltender.
There is a new update regarding the looming Nurse trade that players might be involved in, as well as a potential bidding war.
Edmonton Oilers News: Darnell Nurse to Talk About Expanding Trade List
There has been a good amount of reporting regarding the list of teams Nurse would accept a trade to. David Pagnotta was recently on a podcast and discussed the two frontrunners to acquire Nurse. Additionally, one of them is not currently on his list.
“There are a couple of options available right now with respect to Edmonton and moving Darnell Nurse,” Pagnotta revealed on the June 27th episode of the Hello Hockey podcast. “I reported yesterday that Boston is another team on his list that he would be willing to go to. But nothing, I believe, has transpired on that front. It sounds like it’s Philadelphia and Anaheim that are battling this one out to try and get Darnell Nurse.”
“Now, the Ducks are not on his preferred list, and I believe there is going to be a conversation today that he’s going to have with his representation to determine whether or not that’s an avenue they want to go down.”
This would be a massive update on the Nurse sweepstakes. Adding the Ducks to a list that already includes the Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Boston Bruins, and San Jose Sharks is good news for the Oilers.
What a Nurse Trade With the Anaheim Ducks & Philadelphia Flyers Would Look Like
Furthermore, Pagnotta revealed what a Nurse trade could look like with the Ducks and Flyers.
“My understanding is that if this trade does happen with the Ducks, there would be no salary retention,” Pagnotta said. “I think there is retention in place if he goes to Philly. I don’t think it’s overly significant… under two million… one and a half in that range.”
In addition to the salary issue, Pagnotta spoke about a player returning to the Oilers.
“I know there was some conversation with respect to Owen Zellweger before he was traded to Buffalo,” Pagnotta revealed. “I know the Ristolainen discussion, I don’t get the sense that that would be part of this. There would be at least one player coming back from the deal on either end. And it sounds like it’s a defenseman.”
That is a huge development in the Nurse saga. Having two teams fight over Nurse is the best-case scenario for the Oilers at this point.
One way or another, it looks like the Nurse situation could be resolved for the Oilers in the coming days. Stay tuned.
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