Darnell Nurse finally breaks his silence on slash leading to Roope Hintz injury
Photo credit: Edmonton Oilers Raw
Darnell Nurse has finally addressed his slash that injured Roope Hintz, and the Oilers defenceman isn't apologizing.
Nurse delivered a forceful slash to the foot of Hintz in Game 2, which knocked the Stars forward out of the lineup with injury since. NHL Player Safety decided not to suspend or fine Nurse.
Oilers' Darnell Nurse breaks his silence on Roope Hintz injury
For the first time since the incident, Darnell Nurse spoke to media and was asked about Hintz's injury. Nurse conceded that the injury was unfortunate, but the slash was a play that happens all the time.
I was backing up to the net and I got a shot in the back. I think it was just a natural reaction. It's probably a play that everyone in this room, probably happens dozens of times, two dozen times in a year.
Unfortunate that I must have got him in a bad spot, you don't want to hurt anyone, but it's just one of those plays that happens so often.
- Darnell Nurse
Unfortunate that I must have got him in a bad spot, you don't want to hurt anyone, but it's just one of those plays that happens so often.
- Darnell Nurse
Nurse is obviously correct that those types of slashes happen all the time in net-front battles, especially in the playoffs. There's not intent to severely injure when it's two players just battling for position and wear each other down.
As for questionable plays that injure players and go unpunished, that's just the NHL. The Oilers fell victim to the same situation after Alex Petrovic's hit on Connor Brown. In that sense, the Oilers and Stars are even now.
Roope Hintz listed as Game-time decision for tonight's game vs Oilers
Roope Hintz missed Game 3 with injury, and the matinee game may not have helped him make a quick return. For tonight's game, Stars Coach Pete DeBoer has listed Hintz as a game-time decision. He'll take warmup, and decide from there.
The Oilers have an amazing chance tonight to take a 3-1 series lead on home ice, and just be one win away from the Cup Final again.
| POLL | ||
MAI 27 | 1273 ANSWERS Darnell Nurse finally breaks his silence on slash leading to Roope Hintz injury Do you think Nurse should've been suspended or fined for the slash on Hintz? | ||
| Suspended | 74 | 5.8 % |
| Fined | 208 | 16.3 % |
| Nothing | 991 | 77.8 % |
| List of polls | ||
