Nurse expects to sign contract with Oilers before training camp

TORONTO -- Darnell Nurse is confident he will sign a contract with the Edmonton Oilers before training camp opens in September.

"At some point it will get done, but I'm just excited to get into the season," the 23-year-old defenseman told SiriusXM NHL Network Radio at BioSteel Camp on Aug. 27. "I know at some point I'll be lacing up beside the boys and I'm very confident that at some point before camp it will be done."
Nurse is a restricted free agent and set NHL career highs in goals (six), assists (20), points (26), plus/minus (plus-15), shots on goal (194) and ice time per game (22:15) last season.
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"He is a player we want to get signed and we will sign," Oilers general manager Peter Chiarelli told CHED 630-AM on Aug. 7. "There are just different leverage points and it's no accident that there is a long list of restricted free agents [in the NHL]. It happens every year, and Darnell is in that group."
Nurse, who has 47 points (14 goals, 33 assists) in 197 NHL games, said there is no need for concern that he and the Oilers won't get a contract done.
"From my standpoint, I'm not worked up at all," Nurse said. "It will get done at some point. The big question is always why isn't it done, but I'm not the first guy to ever go through this and there's a lot of guys going through it too. I'm not the only guy right now without a contract who is a defenseman and is an RFA."
Oilers captain Connor McDavid said he expects Nurse to continue to evolve and grow into a key contributor once the defenseman signs a contract. Nurse was Edmonton's first-round pick (No. 7) at the 2013 NHL Draft.
"I think you expect a big role from him; he played a big part on our team last year with injuries and whatnot, and his game [kept] growing," McDavid said at BioSteel Camp. "I think you saw kind of saw him get out of his shell offensively and physically. I think his game is only going to get better."

Nurse said he has found the experience very educational thus far and has been amused when he has received criticism from fans on social media for not having signed a contract. He said he understands why fans are anxious but is aware there is a process that has to be worked through.
"I'm not at a point where I'm in panic mode; that's what you hire agents for," Nurse said. "They do that part and for me. I'm a guy who likes to be involved, but it's more of an educational process for me right now. I'm learning a lot, not only on the contract side but everything that goes on around it too.
"It's kind of funny as a player; you sit there waiting for a contract, you want it to be done as bad as the team wants it to be done, but you're just getting carved by everybody on social media. I want to get a deal done, but that's just how it works today. When you get carved by your own fans, it kind of gives you a nice little chip on your shoulder. That's just the nature of the beast. You can't ever take something personal in today's day and age."