Both the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Edmonton Oilers are off to rough starts. Toronto is stuck at the bottom of the Atlantic, and Edmonton sits third-last in the Pacific, nowhere near where teams with recent deep playoff runs are expected to be.
With both clubs searching for a spark, former NHL general manager Doug MacLean has suggested a bold shake-up: a defenseman-for-defenseman swap involving the Oilers’ $74 million blueliner.
Doug MacLean Suggests Oilers Send $74M Darnell Nurse to the Leafs for Morgan Rielly
On the Real Kyper & Bourne podcast, MacLean floated the idea of trading Toronto’s Morgan Rielly for Edmonton’s Darnell Nurse, who is currently in year four of his eight-year, $74 million contract.
MacLean believes both players are talented but not playing to their potential this season. When discussing Rielly, he said the longtime Leaf had always been just shy of becoming a true top-tier No. 2 defenseman, and now he isn’t sure Rielly even looks like a top-four guy.
As for Nurse, MacLean said, “I mean, at 9 and a half million, I mean, that’s a that’s a tough contract to swallow. For a guy that is really, really inconsistent in his game, and I don’t know what it would be like in Toronto for him because we know the market, how tough it is.”
Still, he said he’d make the trade if he were Toronto: taking a chance on Nurse might be worth it.
When asked whether the deal made sense for both sides, MacLean doubled down, saying he’d accept Nurse “in a heartbeat.” He also questioned if Oilers GM Stan Bowman might be interested in making that deal.
MacLean still pointed out, “Hey, Morgan Riley’s perceived as a pretty good player in the NHL. And maybe it might do him the world of good to go somewhere where else.”
Both players have no-movement clauses, which makes a deal like this tough to pull off. But if they were willing to waive them, it could give each defenseman a much-needed fresh start.
Rielly’s smaller cap hit and stronger offensive game could make the move attractive for Edmonton, especially if they want more flexibility and a path out of Nurse’s contract. For now, though, it’s just speculation, and we’ll have to wait and see if anything even close to this idea ever comes to life.