The Edmonton Oilers made a last-minute signing before kicking off the 2016-17 season, inking Kris Russell to a one-year deal. Though many were skeptical to take him, due to his unimpressive statistics, he has proven to be more than his numbers.
Edmonton Oilers
In 63 games this season, Russell has a goal and 11 points and is a plus-5. He has a helper in four of his last five games and is proving to start getting more involved offensively. A leader on the backend, Russell is also impressing on the backend. He has 64 hits but has shocked more with his unrealistic shot-blocking ability, posting 163 blocks and counting this season.
Russell is set to again hit the free-agency market at the end of this year, but the Oilers should truly consider keeping him, as he has surprised this season and gone above and beyond to help this team. He is also a huge reason why there is more depth on defence and why the team is headed to their first playoffs in 10 seasons.
First off, Russell is incredibly versatile. The 29-year-old blueliner can play the right or left side, and knows how to backcheck effectively. He is good at covering his man and keeping track of the play, and also looks after the puck. While his analytics don’t tell that story, watching him on the ice shows how good of a defender he is. He can be physical and block shots on net, while also helping maintain possession and start the breakout.
Not to mention, he has top-four potential and is an outstanding player to have to increase depth. Without him, the Oilers would be able to survive, as they have Matthew Benning and a wide variety of defenders to look at on the market, but Russell has brought a lot to the ice this year.
Just as the team kept Eric Gryba, they should also show some faith in Russell.