[Rumour] The Kris Russell Sweepstakes Continue - UPDATE: Oilers offer 1-year deal?

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by Resolute 14

As much as some here are crapping all over Russell, he is still a pretty good defenceman. And more importantly for the Oilers, a motivated player who will sell out. Mock blocking all you like, but teammates notice that stuff and respond to it. If he signs, the Oilers are going to be improved both on the ice and in attitude.

Yeah the "motivated player" is what bothers me, not his skill set per se.

[GranteedEV]

Originally Posted by AcGold

He's a good defenseman based on what?

He's a good skater?
Good in the dzone?
Good offensively?
Physical presence?
Good outlet passes?

I can block shots too, I have blocked shots. Blocked a few of Lannys shots when I played hockey on his sons team. He gave me props and said good hustle, but I sucked at hockey and blocking is the easiest thing to do in the game, stay still and don't move.

I would say Russell is an above-average defenseman based on special teams.

Over the last three seasons, among 120 defensemen with 150+ minutes at 5v4:
44th-best in points rate (3.47-per-60)
59th-best in on-ice unblocked shot attempts for rate (64.02 FF60)
48th-best in relative on-ice unblocked shot attempts for rate (+5.28 FF60.rel)

Over the last three seasons, among 178 defensemen with 150+ minutes at 4v5:
53rd-best in high danger chances against rate (20.35 SCA60)
37th-best in relative high danger chances against rate (-1.57 SCA60.rel)


These are all stats that obviously fall in the top ~25-40 percentile of NHL defensemen who got the privilege of special teams time. They're not the only information you wanna be looking at but I think they do show that he's a positive influence on special teams.

I would also say he's a 3rd pairing defenseman at 5-on-5. I don't consider him a middle pair guy but he can help you if he's sheltered. Anyone who's watched the Flames over the last three years could tell you his major issue is playing tight enough gaps and dealing with forechecking pressure, but he's still a top 6 defenseman. One that can help a team if used right.

(Stats from Corsica.hockey)

[Cali Panthers Fan]

Originally Posted by AcGold

He's a good defenseman based on what?

He's a good skater? Yes.
Good in the dzone? Adequate, but sometimes gets pinned deep by bigger teams.
Good offensively? Better than average.
Physical presence? Not much of one, but he battles like a bulldog.
Good outlet passes? Yes.

I can block shots too, I have blocked shots. Blocked a few of Lannys shots when I played hockey on his sons team. He gave me props and said good hustle, but I sucked at hockey and blocking is the easiest thing to do in the game, stay still and don't move.

Responses in bold. I wonder if you were watching him at all with the Flames because it seems like you're only focusing on the fact that he blocked shots.

[bubbsy]

guy plays hard -> check
guy plays defence -> check
decent 4-6 dman -> check
experienced and can take on an immediate leadership role -> check

i think no matter what your opinion is of russel, there is little doubt in my mind that he improves that club. I generally like russel also, and unfortunately, it would suck to have to hate him, so hope he avoids the no good oilers franchise.

[Poe969]

Russell would be one of the best if not the best defender on the oilers, but that's like being the tallest midget. I don't think he'd improve that team and I think some are overselling the "hard work will rub off on the team" aspect. I think Russell's play would decline before the oilers play improves.

[Vulcan]

If Russell was better offensively like I thought he may be, coming out of junior, he'd be getting big money but he's only average. On the defensive side, he's too small to handle big forwards despite his willingness to mix it up. Used on a bottom pairing, he's okay paired with a physical d man but we don't need him.

[ricardodw]

Originally Posted by DeluxeMoustache

On the other hand, the Flames made the playoffs and went to the second round with Russell as a top four.

Last year can not be hung on him alone.

He can be part of a productive team in the right role. He does need the right partner and team construct.

Nobody else played well with Hamilton on the Flames

Gio was a a disaster. Brodie at year end actually became a minus player. Russell was asked to cover for Hamilton and they played well together for a while.

Wideman was not the most mobile d-man in the league in 2014-15. With Russell doing the skating they were an elite D pairing carrying the Flames to the playoffs and winning a playoff series.


Calling him a #4-5 defenseman based on last year is actually calling Hamilton a #5/6


PS. I don't want him back as a Flame.... too similar a style to Gio and Brodie ... need a crusher to go with our rushers. rather have him in the East. He is liable to make Nurse look like a NHL level D-man.

[Ashasx]

The one benefit I can see for the Oilers here is that he would replace somebody like Nurse (who needs more AHL time) on the bottom pairing. If he plays higher than that, then I don't think it will be pretty.

I also think there's significant risk here for Russell though. The Oilers haven't really done well free agents performing up to their contracts recently. It's possible that if he signs a one year deal, and things go about as well as they did in Dallas, that it could be his last NHL contract.

[Young_Guns]

Originally Posted by ricardodw

Nobody else played well with Hamilton on the Flames

Gio was a a disaster. Brodie at year end actually became a minus player. Russell was asked to cover for Hamilton and they played well together for a while.

Wideman was not the most mobile d-man in the league in 2014-15. With Russell doing the skating they were an elite D pairing carrying the Flames to the playoffs and winning a playoff series.


Calling him a #4-5 defenseman based on last year is actually calling Hamilton a #5/6

Calling Russell and Wideman elite is absurd

[TheoFleury]

Originally Posted by ricardodw

Nobody else played well with Hamilton on the Flames

Gio was a a disaster. Brodie at year end actually became a minus player. Russell was asked to cover for Hamilton and they played well together for a while.

Wideman was not the most mobile d-man in the league in 2014-15. With Russell doing the skating they were an elite D pairing carrying the Flames to the playoffs and winning a playoff series.


Calling him a #4-5 defenseman based on last year is actually calling Hamilton a #5/6


PS. I don't want him back as a Flame.... too similar a style to Gio and Brodie ... need a crusher to go with our rushers. rather have him in the East. He is liable to make Nurse look like a NHL level D-man.

I'm sorry, are you suggesting Russell was more effective than Hamilton last year? I remember Hamilton struggling when playing with rusty Giordano and Russell himself, but as long as he was away from those situations he was easily one of the team's top 3-4 D consistently.

[ricardodw]

Originally Posted by pac_4_ever

Calling Russell and Wideman elite is absurd

20 games at the end of 2014-15 they played 25+ minutes each went a ppg and were big plus players playing against the other teams top line.

[ricardodw]

Originally Posted by TheoFleury

I'm sorry, are you suggesting Russell was more effective than Hamilton last year? I remember Hamilton struggling when playing with rusty Giordano and Russell himself, but as long as he was away from those situations he was easily one of the team's top 3-4 D consistently.

and yet Hamilton was #5 in TOI. He was held back by his being beaten consistently 5 on 5 (-14) on the season -9 with Gio at start and -6 with Brodie at the end and even when paired with Russell

[WesternCanadaKing]

Put me in the anti-Russell camp, the guy is a possession black hole and turnover machine. He's too small to physically control the puck, and while he makes up for it a bit with above average skating, he gets bogged down way too easily. He blocks a ton of shots because he never has the puck. There's something to say for his offensive upside, but even that comes only in spurts. He's an unbalanced player in that he is very good at a few things, and really terrible at others.

If his weaknesses are too exposed, he's a downright liability.

[TheoFleury]

Originally Posted by ricardodw

and yet Hamilton was #5 in TOI. He was held back by his being beaten consistently 5 on 5 (-14) on the season -9 with Gio at start and -6 with Brodie at the end and even when paired with Russell

Yeah, Hartley buried him for months after he couldn't cover up for Gio's poor play at the start of the season. He wouldn't even use him on the PP really either for some reason, despite the fact that Wideman was a black hole of uselessness. That's more on Hartley than anything and look where those types of decisions got him.

A lot changed as the year went on and I look at the last half of the season as a more likely predictor of what will happen next year. Looking at the season average is a flawed way of looking at because the team dynamic changed so much.

If Wideman is still on the top PP instead of Hamilton under Gulutzan, I will concede the point. If Gulutzan gives Hamilton the fifth most ice time, I will definitely concede the point.

However, neither is going to happen, so maybe lets stop focusing on how Hartley deployed Hamilton from October to January of last season?

[Locke]

Originally Posted by Resolute 14

As much as some here are crapping all over Russell, he is still a pretty good defenceman. And more importantly for the Oilers, a motivated player who will sell out. Mock blocking all you like, but teammates notice that stuff and respond to it. If he signs, the Oilers are going to be improved both on the ice and in attitude.

While I dont disagree on any particular point, Russell needs certain circumstances to be successful at the level he expects to be paid at and that the team needs him to be.

Unfortunately those circumstances are hard to maintain.

Throw Kris Russell onto the Oilers and I'd say hes their 3rd best, maybe even 2nd best defenceman.

Are those circumstances in which Kris Russell has the skillset to not only survive but to thrive?

And that isnt even mentioning the minor matter of the Edmonton Oilers, as a unit, being a boat anchor chained around his neck.

Its just a recipe for disaster.

And, as I indicated earlier I think Russell is a great guy and would do his best in the dressing room to address the attitude of that team and again, he'd be polishing the brass on the Titanic.

I dont think even Kris Russell is the Silver Bullet for that particular Werewolf.

[BigFlameDog]

Russell is an absolute train wreck in his own zone and there is no other way around it....he gets absolutely manhandled and has a terrible first pass. I don't have a lot of strong opinions on many players but sometimes I think people are watching different games when it comes to this guy.

He leads the league in blocked shots because he can't clear the friggin zone, his partner is constantly having to cover is arse. I don't know how many times we have watched him block a shot because he couldn't out battle his man in the corner or he tried up and out and the opposing dman grabs it. He sure hustles to the middle and gets in the way after that lol.

I agree that once he leaves the zone he can be intriguing if he has a little skating room, but it isn't enough to cancel out his brutal own zone play. I think this guy should have been switched to forward back in the day, I think he would have been decent there.

Sounds like he is a great guy but I will breath a sigh of relief when he signs anywhere but here. There is a reason he is still out there.

[Weitz]

Dustin Nielson ‏@nielsonTSN1260 3m3 minutes ago
I've been told that the Oilers have offered a one year deal to Russell. May have another update later today. Let's see where this goes.

[Bingo]

Originally Posted by ricardodw

Nobody else played well with Hamilton on the Flames

Gio was a a disaster. Brodie at year end actually became a minus player. Russell was asked to cover for Hamilton and they played well together for a while.

Wideman was not the most mobile d-man in the league in 2014-15. With Russell doing the skating they were an elite D pairing carrying the Flames to the playoffs and winning a playoff series.


Calling him a #4-5 defenseman based on last year is actually calling Hamilton a #5/6


PS. I don't want him back as a Flame.... too similar a style to Gio and Brodie ... need a crusher to go with our rushers. rather have him in the East. He is liable to make Nurse look like a NHL level D-man.

Stats don't back any of this ...

The Flames struggled to start the season, but when you look at Hamilton's minutes last year the following is the result.

Partner Time CF%
Russell 552 min 44.6
Giordano 220 min 52.8%
Engellend 175 min 50.4%
Brodie 149 min 52.8%
Jokipakka 76 min 41.6%
Wideman 76 min 56%

The only real zit is with Russell, and given the fact that Russell was between 40 and 44% CF with every single partner in Calgary and Dallas last year, I'm not sure it was Hamilton's fault.

Wideman/Russell did their best but they were always a sink hole in possession.

[BlackWallStreet]

I would lose a ton of respect/admiration if Kris signs in edm

[TheoFleury]

Originally Posted by BlackWallStreet

I would lose a ton of respect/admiration if Kris signs in edm

Why?