Darnell Nurse’s Game 4 performance lauded by Oilers team despite rocky start

The Edmonton Oilers players lauded Darnell Nurse for his impressive performance in the Game 4 win against the Dallas Stars on Wednesday. Nurse has been dealing with the tough challenge of regaining his form in the playoffs.

However, the 29-year-old defenseman made a comeback with a stellar performance in Game 4, helping the Oilers beat the Stars 5-2 to even the series at 2-2.

Despite a rocky start, which included an unfortunate deflection leading to a goal and being on the ice for the Stars’ opening goal, Darnell Nurse displayed impressive resilience and determination throughout the game.

He finished the contest with an assist, recording 12 hits and three blocked shots. Leon Draisaitl praised Nurse for his impressive performance after the game and reckoned it helped the Oilers set the tone in various ways:

“Yeah, absolutely. that’s what he does a lot of nights,” Draisaitl said. “A lot of the things he does go unnoticed. he plays extremely hard, maybe his confidence hasn’t been where we’ve all seen it be, but those things happen. it’s normal. he’s a human being and tonight was a great step for him. I thought he was outstanding tonight.”

In the post-game media interactions, coach Kris Knoblauch described Darnell Nurse’s performance as his best game of the series:

“Personally, I thought it was his best game of the series, maybe of the playoffs.” Knoblauch said of Nurse via Sportsnet on X.

Connor McDavid also praised Nurse for his performance, reckoning that he played great and was solid throughout the game despite a challenging start (via Sportsnet’s Kyle Bukauskas):

“I thought Darnell played great. I thought he got off to an unfair start again, but he’s a battler. I said this morning, he gives us everything he’s got and he did again tonight. “He was a rock,” McDavid said.

Connor Brown also spoke highly of Darnell Nurse after the game:

“A lot to be said about Darnell. Everyone and their dog coming at him this morning. Two tough bounces to start the game, and he settles in and plays probably his best game in the playoffs, and leads us to a victory. That’s character right there.”

Darnell Nurse’s teammate Leon Draisaitl speaks on first-period collapse

Leon Draisaitl, who scored a goal in the matchup, reflected on the first-period collapse by the Oilers. He said that the team might have been a bit slow at the beginning of the game but managed to pick up the pace and play their style of hockey.

He said (via NHL.com):

“I think maybe we were a little sleepy for a couple minutes there (in the first period),” Draisaitl said.

“But we found our legs, got going a little bit, started to play our game. Stayed fresh, rolled lines, and obviously we’re a tough team to handle when we play that way”

Darnell Nurse and the Oilers travel to the American Airlines Center for Game 5 on Friday.