Darnell Nurse (born February 4, 1995) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...

defenceman Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the latter a reference to ...

and alternate captain for the

Edmonton Oilers The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton. The Oilers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. They play their home games at Rogers Place, which ...

of the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

(NHL). Nurse was selected by the Oilers seventh overall in the

2013 NHL Entry Draft The 2013 NHL Entry Draft was the 51st NHL Entry Draft. All seven rounds of the draft took place on June 30, 2013, at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The top three selections were Nathan MacKinnon going to the Colorado Avalanche, Al ...

Early life

Nurse was born on February 4, 1995, in

Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Hamilton has a Canada 2016 Census, population of 569,353, and its Census Metropolitan Area, census metropolitan area, which includes Burlington, ...

. Both of his parents were athletes in their youth: his father

Richard Nurse Richard Nurse (born March 13, 1966) is a Canadian former wide receiver who played in the Canadian Football League (CFL). He was selected by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the third round of the 1990 CFL Draft. Born in Trinidad and Tobago, Nurse wa ...

played as a wide receiver for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

, while his mother Cathy was a

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

player for the

McMaster Marauders The McMaster Marauders are the athletic teams that represent McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Athletics at McMaster is currently managed by the university's student affairs, under their athletics & recreation department. The unive ...

. As a child, Nurse played football, basketball, lacrosse, and

, but by high school, he was only playing the latter. His father was worried that Nurse would suffer an injury playing football, while he was, in his own words, "just no good" at basketball. Standing and weighing by the age of 15, Nurse established himself quickly as a strong, physically assertive

for the Don Mills Flyers

minor ice hockey Minor hockey is an umbrella term for amateur ice hockey which is played below the junior age level. Players are classified by age, with each age group playing in its own league. The rules, especially as it relates to body contact, vary from c ...

team.

Playing career

Major junior

Nurse was selected third overall by the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in the 2011

Ontario Hockey League The Ontario Hockey League (OHL; french: Ligue de hockey de l'Ontario (LHO)) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The league is for players aged 16–19. There are exceptions for overa ...

(OHL) Priority Selection. After two seasons with the Greyhounds, he was selected seventh overall by the

in the

. On July 25, the Oilers signed Nurse to a three-year, entry-level contract. He was returned to the Greyhounds for the 2013–14 season. Prior to the season beginning, he was named team captain. He scored a career-high 50 points in 64 games. After the Greyhounds' season ended, Nurse joined the Oilers'

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 season, every team in the le ...

(AHL) affiliate, the

Oklahoma City Barons The Oklahoma City Barons were a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL). The team's first season was 2010–11. They played their home games at the Cox Convention Center, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. History On February 9 ...

. He skated in four

regular season In an organized sports league, a typical season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session: for example, in Major League Baseball the season lasts approximately from the last week of March to the last week of ...

games as well as three

playoff The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

games.

Edmonton Oilers

Nurse made the Oilers' opening night roster for the 2014–15 season, but did not partake in the team's first three games. He made his NHL debut on October 14 in a 6–1 loss to the

Los Angeles Kings The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and was founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent ...

. After skating in two games for the team, the Oilers sent Nurse back to the Greyhounds on October 17. Darnell Nurse 2015

Nurse began the 2015–16 season with the Oilers' new AHL affiliate, the

Bakersfield Condors The Bakersfield Condors are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL) based in Bakersfield, California. The team is owned by and affiliated with the National Hockey League's Edmonton Oilers. The Condors play their home ...

. After six games with the Condors, the Oilers recalled Nurse on October 26. On October 27, Nurse scored his first career NHL goal in a 4–3 loss to the

Minnesota Wild The Minnesota Wild are a professional ice hockey team based in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The Wild competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference and play their home games at the Xcel Ener ...

. On March 10, 2016, Nurse was suspended three games for "''serving as the aggressor''" during an altercation with

San Jose Sharks The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference, and are owned by San Jose Sports & Entertainm ...

defenceman

Roman Polák Roman Polák (born 28 April 1986) is a Czech professional ice hockey defenceman who is currently under contract with HC Vítkovice of the Czech Extraliga (ELH). Polák was drafted in the sixth round, 180th overall, at the 2004 NHL Entry Draft by ...

. He finished his rookie season skating in 69 games for the Oilers and nine for the Condors. On December 12, 2016, the Oilers announced Nurse underwent successful ankle surgery that would sideline him for up to 12 weeks. After a 35-game absence, he returned on February 26, 2017 in a 5–4 loss to the

Nashville Predators The Nashville Predators (commonly referred to as the Preds) are a professional ice hockey team based in Nashville, Tennessee. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and ha ...

. On September 17, 2018, the Oilers re-signed Nurse to a two-year, $6.4 million contract extension. On October 1, 2019, Nurse (alongside

Leon Draisaitl Leon Tim Draisaitl (; born 27 October 1995) is a German professional ice hockey centre and alternate captain for the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Draisaitl grew up playing hockey in Germany until he was selected second ove ...

) was named an alternate captain for the Oilers. On February 10, 2020, the Oilers signed Nurse to a two-year, $11.2 million contract extension. On August 6, 2021, Nurse signed an eight-year, $74 million extension with the Oilers.

International play

During the 2011–12 season he won a bronze medal with Team Ontario at the 2012 World U-17 Hockey Challenge and was named to the Tournament All-Star Team. That same season, Nurse was one of only four underage players to play with Team Canada at the

2012 IIHF World U18 Championships The 2012 IIHF U18 World Championship was the 14th IIHF World U18 Championship and was hosted in Brno, Znojmo and Břeclav, Czech Republic. It began on 12 April 2012 with the gold medal game played on 22 April 2012. Brno and Znojmo were originally ...

, winning the bronze medal. During the 2012–13 season he played with Team Canada to win a gold medal at the 2012 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament. Nurse was also an invited participant at the 2013

CHL Top Prospects Game The CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game is an annual event in which forty of the top NHL Entry Draft eligible prospects in the Canadian Hockey League play against each other in an all-star game environment. Players are able to boost their draft ranking w ...

. He won gold with Canada at the 2015 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship and was named one of Canada's top three players, as well as the player of the match for the gold medal game against Russia. On April 12, 2018, Nurse and teammates

Connor McDavid Connor Andrew McDavid (born January 13, 1997) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre and captain of the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Oilers selected him first overall in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft. McDavid spen ...

and

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins Ryan Jarromie Noel Nugent-Hopkins (born April 12, 1993) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre and alternate captain for the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Nicknamed "Nuge" by Oilers fans, Nugent-Hopkins was selected ...

were named to the Team Canada's

2018 IIHF World Championship The 2018 IIHF World Championship was an international ice hockey tournament hosted by the Danish cities of Copenhagen and Herning, held from 4–20 May 2018. The IIHF announced the winning bid on 23 May 2014 in Minsk, Belarus. South Korea made ...

roster. On April 29, 2019, Nurse returned to the international stage to be named to the Team Canada roster for the 2019 IIHF World Championship held in

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

. Nurse helped Canada progress through to the playoff rounds before losing the final to

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

to finish with the Silver Medal on May 26, 2019. He completed the tournament posting 2 goals and 4 points from the blueline in 10 games.

Personal life

Nurse attended St. Thomas More Catholic Secondary School and St. Mary's College, where he was awarded the

Bobby Smith Trophy The Bobby Smith Trophy is awarded annually to the Ontario Hockey League Scholastic Player of the Year, who best combines high standards of play and academic excellence. The trophy is named for Bobby Smith, a former Ottawa 67's player. It is symb ...

for "OHL Scholastic Player of the Year" following the 2012–13 season. He is the son of former

wide receiver

. His sister,

Kia Kia Corporation, commonly known as Kia (, ; formerly known as Kyungsung Precision Industry and Kia Motors Corporation), is a South Korean multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Seoul, South Korea. It is South Korea's second lar ...

, currently plays for the Phoenix Mercury of the

Women's National Basketball Association The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) is an American professional basketball league. It is composed of twelve teams, all based in the United States. The league was founded on April 22, 1996, as the women's counterpart to the Natio ...

(WNBA). She won two

NCAA championship The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges and ...

with the Connecticut Huskies, and is a member of the Canadian national team. His cousin,

Sarah Nurse Sarah Nurse (born January 4, 1995) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player of the Canadian women's national ice hockey team. She made her debut with the national team at the 2015 4 Nations Cup. In 2018, she represented Canada at the 2018 Wi ...

, won a gold medal at the 2022 winter Olympics and a silver medal with the Canadian national ice hockey team at the

2018 Winter Olympics The 2018 Winter Olympics ( ko, 2018년 동계 올림픽, Icheon sip-pal nyeon Donggye Ollimpik), officially the XXIII Olympic Winter Games (french: Les XXIIIes Jeux olympiques d'hiver; ko, 제23회 동계 올림픽, Jeisipsamhoe Donggye Ollimpi ...

. His uncle, Donovan McNabb, was an NFL quarterback who played in six

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

s and had his number retired by the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team play ...

. Nurse and his fiancée Mikayla welcomed their first child, a son named Aiden, on Tuesday, May 25, 2021.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards and honours

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nurse, Darnell 1995 births Living people Bakersfield Condors players Black Canadian ice hockey players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Canadian ice hockey defencemen Canadian sportspeople of Trinidad and Tobago descent Edmonton Oilers draft picks Edmonton Oilers players Ice hockey people from Ontario National Hockey League first-round draft picks Nurse family Oklahoma City Barons players Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds players Sportspeople from Hamilton, Ontario