Oilers' Nurse gives blunt assessment on how to turn things around

The Edmonton Oilers’ nightmarish start to the season continued last night, as they fell to the New York Rangers by a 3-0 final.

It seems that after hearing they were expected to be Stanley Cup contenders all offseason, the Oilers thought things would be easy going in the early stages of 2023-24. Instead, they find themselves with a 1-5-1 record through seven games. After yet another defeat last night, Darnell Nurse couldn’t help but show his frustration.

“You can’t win in this league if you’re not bringing 60-minute efforts. It’s as simple as that,” Nurse said. “We have to reset. Can’t feel sorry for ourselves, we have to move on.

“We’ve gotta be better… It’s as simple as that. That’s the dialogue, everyone knows. It’s easy to point fingers and whatnot. Everyone just needs to look in the mirror at this point and be a whole lot f*cking better.”

While the comments won’t help in terms of the Oilers’ win-loss record, it is refreshing to hear a player voice his frustration like this. At the very least, it shows this team isn’t taking their struggles lightly. Their talent level remains extremely high, and with more attitudes like Nurse displayed, they should still have more than enough time to turn things around.

As for Nurse himself, he has been a lightning rod for criticism as of late due to his $9.25 million cap hit. Salary aside, however, the 28-year-old has been one of the team’s better players in the early going this season. While he is still capable of giving more, he is far from the biggest issue on this roster at the moment.

As dark as things appear for the Oilers right now, they may soon get a major boost, as Connor McDavid was able to skate on Thursday morning, and may be able to suit up in the Heritage Classic versus the Calgary Flames on Sunday. His return may be just what the doctor ordered to get this team back to their winning ways.

You might also like:

Oilers may soon be forced to place Connor Brown on waivers