Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid said he stands by defenceman Darnell Nurse amid his poor performance during the Stanley Cup Playoffs. McDavid called Nurse “a big piece of our room.” “Plus, minus, whatever,” said McDavid at a Wednesday press conference. “I know it’s a funny stat.” .Nurse’s statistics have been poor as of Tuesday, sitting at a -12 after 15 playoff games, and fans have been taking it out on the $9-million-a-year man.This number is the lowest out of any defence remaining in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, with Florida Panthers defence Oliver Ekman-Larsson in second place at -4. While some of the blame falls on Nurse, not every goal he has been on the ice for has been his fault. He had a shot hit off of his skate and by Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner in Game One of its round against the Los Angeles Kings. A reporter said Nurse had taken a ton of heat over the last day. “His numbers in this series don’t show well,” said the reporter. “Your thoughts I guess on how he’s played, the heat he’s getting, and what you think he’ll get tonight.” For a long time, McDavid said Nurse has given all of his energy to the Oilers. “I would expect him to have a great one tonight,” he said.
Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid said he stands by defenceman Darnell Nurse amid his poor performance during the Stanley Cup Playoffs. McDavid called Nurse “a big piece of our room.” “Plus, minus, whatever,” said McDavid at a Wednesday press conference. “I know it’s a funny stat.” .Nurse’s statistics have been poor as of Tuesday, sitting at a -12 after 15 playoff games, and fans have been taking it out on the $9-million-a-year man.This number is the lowest out of any defence remaining in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, with Florida Panthers defence Oliver Ekman-Larsson in second place at -4. While some of the blame falls on Nurse, not every goal he has been on the ice for has been his fault. He had a shot hit off of his skate and by Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner in Game One of its round against the Los Angeles Kings. A reporter said Nurse had taken a ton of heat over the last day. “His numbers in this series don’t show well,” said the reporter. “Your thoughts I guess on how he’s played, the heat he’s getting, and what you think he’ll get tonight.” For a long time, McDavid said Nurse has given all of his energy to the Oilers. “I would expect him to have a great one tonight,” he said.
