Less than 24 hours after Darnell Nurse was injured by a vicious headshot from Ryan Reaves, the Edmonton Oilers have recalled defenseman Josh Brown from the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors.
Nurse was left dazed and bloodied Saturday night against the Toronto Maple Leafs when Reaves caught him with a shoulder in the chin. The Oilers blue liner fell to the ice, and would eventually skate off the ice with assistance from trainer T.D. Forss and Mattias Janmark.
Reaves was suspended for five games by the NHL’s Department of Player Safety on Sunday afternoon, with the league highlighting how he could’ve avoided the hit, but didn’t.
Brown, 30, signed a three-year, $1-million AAV contract with the Oilers in free agency this summer, but failed to make the team’s opening-day roster. He hit waivers before being assigned to the Condors, where he’s played 12 games, scoring two assists and racking up 46 penalty minutes.
Both assists and seven of those penalty minutes came Saturday night when the Condors visited the San Diego Gulls in a game where they secured a 8-7 win in the shootout. Brown would help set up Cameron Wright in the first period on a goal that gave them a 4-1 lead, while also setting up Seth Griffith in the second as they took a 6-2 lead.
Brown would take an interference penalty knocking down a Gull 12:38 into the first period of the game, and was challenged by forward Nathan Gaucher, who stands at 6’3″, 222 lbs. The 6’5″, 217 lb. Brown would feed Gaucher his lunch right in front of the Gulls bench.
Brown’s game at the NHL level has been below par in recent years, leading to some questions about why the Oilers signed him to a three-year pact on the first day of free agency. What isn’t questioned, however, is Brown’s track record as a heavyweight tough guy, having stood toe-to-toe with some of the toughest players in hockey today.
This year with the Condors, Brown has fought three times prior to last night’s scrap:
There’s no word yet about the status of Nurse, but given the recall, it’s likely he misses Monday’s game against the Montreal Canadiens and Tuesday’s against the Ottawa Senators.
Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist, making up one-half of the DFO DFS Report. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@thenationnetwork.com.
