The Oilers were so desperate they offered Darnell Nurse to the Leafs and Toronto still didn't pull the trigger
Photo credit: David Gonzales-Imagn Images
Edmonton was so desperate to add centre depth that they offered Darnell Nurse to the Maple Leafs for Nic Roy, but Toronto shut that down pretty quickly.
It was a heartbreaking end for the Edmonton Oilers as they were taken out by the Anaheim Ducks in the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs, leading to a lot of questions and concerns about the future outlook of the team; especially Connor McDavid's.
Safe to say that no matter what Edmonton did, the Ducks were able to respond though the fact that McDavid was playing with a broken foot is nothing short of impressive. But adding that extra bit of insurance could have been the factor that pushed the Oilers over the top.
They certainly tried, it's just too bad they got shut down almost immediately - by Toronto no less.
Toronto rejected Darnell Nurse for Nic Roy deal despite needing defensive help
David Pagnotta revealed that the Oilers were looking to add some much needed insurance up front and were willing to offer Darnell Nurse to the Maple Leafs in exchange for Nic Ro; though Pagnotta wasn't very sly in his attempt to mask the details:
We touched on this after the trade deadline, I've mentioned it a few times: Nurse's name was out there the week of the deadline. They offered him up to at least one team, that team said no, that team now has a new general manager...I can't imagine new guy wanting to do that.
One of the other pieces part of that deal that Edmonton was looking at, from what I was told, he's on Colorado right now.
One of the other pieces part of that deal that Edmonton was looking at, from what I was told, he's on Colorado right now.
It's pretty obvious to deduce that it's Roy's name who was bandied about and for good reason considering just how good he's been since going to Colorado and cruising into the postseason.
Nurse coming to Toronto would have been an odd fit though certainly a piece who could have improved the roster by virtue of just being on it. But his offensive game took a nosedive, and his defensive game struggled heavily (a minus-23 point drop from 24-25) and it wasn't like he was dealing with injuries.
And at $9.25-million you're needing a lot of help with retention and if there's still Morgan Rielly kicking about then Toronto is committing $16.75-million between two guys who are both slow and on the wrong side of 30.
His price was too high, and while he would have helped added toughness and stability; a first-round pick is a lot more versatile an asset than having Nurse and could lead to a younger, faster player in the end.
The Nic Roy trade sounds like a failure, but it was insurance for the lottery
Now you could look at the Roy deal on its own and be upset. He's only 28, a great two-way complement, was your main PK centre, and fairly cheap at that. Not to mention you traded Mitch Marner for him and then dumped him months later.
It's the most Maple Leafs thing to do, but it was done with the fact that Tuesday night was never even crossing their minds.
Toronto won the 2026 Draft Lottery in stunning fashion, and they were expected to lose their 2026 pick to Boston, and their 2027th to Philly (Scott Laughton trade). So the move was done to bring in at least some type of asset to give Toronto a fighting chance.
That is still more valuable than Nurse because it allows the team to be able to package that pick with someone else and bring in your new #1 defenceman - like Brandt Clarke, or Toronto can hope that Colorado is mediocre enough to be outside the top-10, but bad enough to be 15-20th and pluck a gem out of next year's draft.
Luckily the Maple Leafs are going to have the likes of Auston Matthews and William Nylander alongside Easton Cowan and presumably Gavin McKenna, so Philadelphia themselves may not be picking too early in the draft either if all goes well.
Brad Treliving's failure as a GM somehow led to Toronto having a first-round pick and not another bloated contract.
A broken watch is right twice a day, I suppose.
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