Under the Radar Nurse Benching Hints at Oilers’ Tough New Standard

Darnell Nurse’s early errors against the Utah Mammoth on Tuesday night became a hot topic of conversation among Oilers fans, a discussion that would have grown louder had the Oilers lost that game. If not for a huge second-period surge — one that Nurse missed a good chunk of since he was sat for the first seven minutes of the period — it might be more of a talking point.

For the first time this season, the Oilers chose to sit a star player. The nurse missed several shifts during the second period, returning with around 13 minutes remaining, and only returned once the team had evened the score at 2-2. His miscues in the first period, including a fumble that led directly to a goal, were too noticeable to ignore.

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“Two major mistakes from Nurse in that period led to goals,” TSN’s Ryan Rishaug noted during the intermission. “Third straight game, Oilers down 2-0… This team hates October.” This was a new way for head coach Kris Knoblauch to manage his bench this season. Over 10 games, several stars have underperformed. Nurse was the first to be benched.

Are the Oilers Starting to Hold Players Accountable?

Forget for a second that Nurse is a polarizing figure and a magnet for criticism in Edmonton. He may never get a fair shake because of his salary and his inconsistent play for what he’s paid. The question becomes, is the decision to bench Nurse for several shifts the new standard moving forward?

While the Oilers collectively needed a wake-up call after 16 turnovers on the rush to start the game, Nurse was singled out. He finished with just 16:49 of ice time — nearly four minutes below his season average — and recorded no points in a game the team ultimately dominated in the final 40.

Whether it was talking to the Oilers between periods or the Nurse benching that sparked the team’s comeback, whatever was said, the decision to make him the scapegoat for a lousy team-wide effort worked.

Perhaps head coach Kris Knoblauch, who has been lightly criticized this season for being slow to discipline poor play, is ready to take action.

One example was the treatment of Evan Bouchard, who, until the last few games when he started producing, has been allowed to work through mistakes on the ice. Sports 1440’s Jason Gregor talked about how Bouchard’s giveaways this season have been so blatant, he’s costing himself a chance to make Team Canada’s Olympic team.

Even Mattias Ekholm noted he hated his own game, but wasn’t sat nor did he see his minutes reduced. Connor McDavid has passed up on several shooting opportunities, and the team’s stars are only now starting to find their rhythm. “Everybody felt enough was enough… We found our game, and that’s gotta be the standard going forward,” said Ekholm.

Will Knoblauch enforce this new standard? The hope is that the Oilers have found something and the coach won’t have to.

And, if it took sitting a $9.25 million defenseman for a few minutes, Nurse will probably be the first to admit it was worth it. He might not personally like it, but he knows he has to better and team wins are more important.

Whether Tuesday night’s benching is an isolated message or a new standard for accountability remains to be seen, but it’s clear the Oilers want their stars to set the tone. The Oilers play the New York Rangers on Thursday night.

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