The Edmonton Oilers made an impressive run to the Western Conference Finals, but were unable to get past the Colorado Avalanche, who sent them home via a four-game sweep on Monday night. The Oilers fought hard but were simply outmatched by the Avs. It certainly didn't help that some key Edmonton players were dealing with some pretty significant injuries. After the Oilers were eliminated, star defenseman Darnell Nurse was asked about his injury, and he indicated that he'd been playing with a torn hip flexor since the last week of the regular season, via Mark Spector.

https://twitter.com/SportsnetSpec/status/1534017987153276929

That's a seriously brutal injury to be playing through, especially considering Nurse was logging important minutes for the Oilers throughout the playoffs. Nurse averaged over 21 minutes per night throughout the postseason, featuring in 15 games. He missed one game to suspension after headbutting Phillip Danault in Edmonton's first-round series against the LA Kings.

The 27-year-old struggled against the Avalanche, making some critical errors defensively that led to goals for Colorado, or left veteran goaltender Mike Smith in a vulnerable position. Nurse even put the puck in his own net in Game 3 after deflecting a pass from the Avs past an unsuspecting Smith.

While Oilers fans were critical of his performance on the ice, it's impossible to deny that he sacrificed in order to try to help the team win, putting his body on the line throughout the entire playoffs despite a very significant injury. The fact he was able to keep playing despite dealing with a torn hip flexor is pretty remarkable, though he'll certainly need to get the ailment addressed during the offseason.

At this point, Oilers fans will be hoping Nurse can get back to full strength for next season, considering he's going to be around for the long haul, having signed a huge eight-year, $74 million contract in August of 2021.