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Oilers' Mattias Ekholm still hopeful Darnell Nurse can bounce back from his poor playoff performance
Darnell Nurse has struggled offensively for the Edmonton Oilers during the 2023-24 NHL playoffs, managing just 3 points over 18 games with 8 PIM so far.
Following the Oilers' 3-0 Game 1 loss to Florida, teammate Mattias Ekholm expressed his confidence that Nurse can turn things around despite his lack of production.
"First off, I think Darnell is a super pro, and he works incredibly hard to ensure he's on the right side of things. I'm sure his luck is going to come. There's a lot of hockey left to be played this year."
"There are going to be times when you just step on the ice, and it feels like it's going to happen—a goal against, like that," Ekholm said." Ekholm said.
He noted that while Nurse has had some tough moments, the defenseman has still contributed in other ways during the Oilers' run to the Cup Final.
"I mean, we're in the Cup Final now, so he's done some good things too. He's heavily relied upon in our team, and you don't get to this point without guys playing well."
"There's going to be tough luck along the way, but I think what I've seen from him has been really impressive, just the way he shrugs it off and knows he's a big part of his team."
Ekholm cited Nurse's physical play and commitment to the team, believing he will still make an impact.
"You saw some of the games, he had 12 hits one night. He's a big, impactful player for us as well. Bad luck's going to happen, and I'm sure he's going to find some luck here in this series."
Despite Nurse's lack of scoring so far in the postseason, Ekholm expressed faith that his teammate will bounce back and make key contributions as the Oilers seek their first Stanley Cup since 1990.
Darnell Nurse's comments following the Oilers' 3-0 loss to the Panthers in Game 1:
Despite the shutout loss, Darnell Nurse saw positives in the Oilers' performance but acknowledged the team needs to be better in Game 2.
"I think we did a lot of things within our game we liked, and there's some things we need to clean up," Darnell Nurse said post-game. "You don't like the result, we regroup, and get ready for game two."
On defending the physical Panthers, Nurse said,
"I think there was some physicality both ways. I think when we get to our speed game, it allows us to play with an advantage against any team, but first we got to continue that into game two."
Darnell Nurse took responsibility for the Panthers' second goal, saying:
"He wins a puck race and it goes through my wickets. I got to get a piece of it."
Regarding Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky's strong performance, Nurse felt the Oilers deserved better but have to keep creating chances.
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