Sharks acquire Darnell Nurse from Oilers

The Edmonton Oilers announced Wednesday they have traded defenseman Darnell Nurse to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for defensemen Shakir Mukhamadullin and Zack Sharp.

The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta reported the Oilers will not retain any of Nurse’s contract, which has four years remaining with a $9.25-million cap hit.

Nurse, 31, scored seven goals and recorded 17 assists for 24 points with 104 penalty minutes, averaging 20:58 of ice time in 82 regular-season games in 2025-26. He also averaged 23:08 in six playoff games last spring.

Nearly three weeks ago, multiple reports indicated Nurse requested a trade from the Oilers. On Monday, Pagnotta reported the Oilers and Sharks re-engaged in trade discussions regarding Nurse.

Across 12 NHL seasons, Nurse, a native of Hamilton, Ont., has 88 goals and 236 assists for 324 points in 798 career regular-season games.

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He’s also dressed in 100 career Stanley Cup Playoff games, posting seven goals and 22 assists for 29 points, averaging 21:41 of ice time. He helped Edmonton reach the Stanley Cup Final in 2024 and 2025.

Going the other way is Mukhamadullin, a 2020 first-round pick for the New Jersey Devils, who scored five goals and added seven assists for 12 points in 50 games with the Sharks last season. Daily Faceoff prospect analyst Steven Ellis wrote on social media after the trade that injuries through the season made it feel like he could “never felt like he could get things going this year.”

“Big left-handed defender who can do a bunch of things well, but isn’t great at anything. Still quite raw, like he was in his draft year,” Ellis wrote. “Might be able to make it work with a change of scenery.”

As for Sharp, a 2025 fourth-round pick for San Jose, he completed his sophomore season at Western Michigan University, where he scored five goals and added 14 assists for 19 points in 37 games.