The Edmonton Oilers are in crunch time regarding a Darnell Nurse trade.

Tuesday is the final day before free agency begins, and with a little over $7.4 million in cap space remaining, the Oilers’ free agency plans hinge on being able to shed Nurse’s contract. Nurse is set to make $9.25 million annually for the next four seasons, with the 2026-27 season being his final season with a full no-move clause.

So far this off-season, there have been six teams that Nurse has been linked to, three in the Eastern Conference and three in the Western Conference. On Monday’s edition of 32 Thoughts, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reported that the only three teams on his list are the Boston Bruins, Philadelphia Flyers, and Pittsburgh Penguins.

Both the San Jose Sharks and Anaheim Ducks reportedly have interest in Nurse, but the left-shot defenceman has yet to agree to either team. The Los Angeles Kings, led by general manager Ken Holland, seemed interested when the news broke out, but it’s been radio silence on that front.

That being said, what do possible trades with the Bruins, Flyers, Penguins, Ducks, and Sharks look like?

Boston Bruins

In that same 32 Thoughts podcast, Friedman noted that the Bruins would need to make “other moves happen” to acquire Nurse. As it stands, the Bruins have a little over $7.7 million in cap space, so they’ll either need to send money back, the Oilers will need to retain, or the Bruins will have to free up cap space in another way.

Now if it’s the former, two players of note could be a fit for the Oilers. Elias Lindholm is a right-shot centre who carries a cap hit of $7.75 million AAV, as well as a no-move clause. While the no-move clause could have prevented issues, Lindholm played in both Calgary and Vancouver before signing with the Bruins ahead of the 2024-25 season.

The fit with the Bruins has been okay. Last season, he scored 17 goals........

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