NHL comes down on Darnell Nurse, huge blow for Oilers

The verdict has come in and the Edmonton Oilers won’t like it. Earlier on Wednesday, it was announced that defenseman was called for a hearing today for Head-butting Los Angeles’ Phillip Danault.

The incident took place with seconds to go in the second period. As the Kings were pressing on the power-play, forward Phil Danault was staying put in front of the Oilers net. Following a shot by a teammate, Danault didn’t get the rebound, but was instead met by a pretty brutal head-butt from Nurse.

It was just announced that the NHL has suspended Nurse for one game for his head-butt on Danault. That means that the top blue liner could miss the remainder of the series if the Oilers can’t survive Game 6 in Los Angeles on Thursday night.

Nurse is not classified as a repeat offender under the NHL’s collective bargaining agreement. He was however suspended in the past: back in 2016 he received a suspension for an aggressor-rule violation after pummelling Roman Polak with punches following a hit Nurse that was deemed dirty. Nurse earned a three-game ban back then. 

Nurse has one goal and two points through five games in the series and leads the team in ice time with an average of 21:45 per game. Cody Ceci, who has three assists in the series, sits second on the team in ice time at 20:48 per game, while Duncan Keith is third among defenseman, averaging 19:34.

After the 5-4 overtime loss in Game 5, captain Connor McDavid appeared to send a message to his defensemen, but now Nurse won’t be there to implement it in Game 6 tomorrow. 

NHL Safety didn't stop there to punish the Oilers, though nothing comes close to losing Nurse for Game 6. Forward Zack Kassian was fined $5,000, the maximum allowable under the CBA, for Cross-checking Los Angeles’ Sean Durzi.