Oilers Insider Pushes Back on Darnell Nurse-for-Morgan Rielly Trade Rumors

Darnell Nurse and Morgan Rielly are two of the bigger-name players who could find themselves on the move this offseason, and recent rumors suggested that a swap of the two polarizing defensemen could even be on the table.

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Oilers reporter Jim Matheson recently threw out the idea, which has since gained traction as both Edmonton and Toronto look to reshape their rosters after disappointing 2025-26 seasons.

While the deal makes some sense on the surface, it’s also quite complicated, and fellow Oilers insider Bob Stauffer revealed on Thursday that he hasn’t heard any chatter about the possibility, although he wouldn’t completely shut it down.

Stauffer said:

“I’ve not heard about that at all. I’ve wondered about San Jose… I’m watching San Jose because they’ve got oodles of cap space and they don’t have any defensemen signed. Part of me is thinking: does somebody offload a contract to San Jose at some point? So I’ve not heard this Rielly-for-Nurse flip myself, but I won’t denigrate the source because the source has been right in the past. So I guess we’ll see what happens—maybe the time has come for a change for a couple of different guys,”

The 31-year-old Nurse has four years remaining on the eight-year, $74 million extension he signed to stay in Edmonton back in 2021, while Rielly, 32, also has four years left on the eight-year, $60 million extension signed with the Maple Leafs in 2021.

Both Nurse and Rielly could benefit from a change of scenery, though they might be better off landing in situations where the pressure and spotlight isn’t as intense as it is in Edmonton and Toronto.

San Jose, as Stauffer mentioned, makes a lot of sense for numerous reasons and will be one of the main teams to watch on the defense market this summer.

Never say never when it comes to a Nurse-for-Rielly swap, but it still feels rather unlikely to come to fruition unless both teams are truly just that desperate to make a change.

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