Is Kris Russell the Missing Piece for Your NHL Team's Blue Line?

In NHL free agency, available players at two positions tend to be gobbled up by the league’s 30 franchises in short order: centres and defencemen.

That makes it more than a little surprising that Kris Russell is still without a contract. It also means there’s still an available option out there for teams that need a little bit of help on their blue line (and who doesn’t?).  

According to TSN’s Bob McKenzie, though, Russell may not be on the market for long. McKenzie did an interview Wednesday with Toronto radio station TSN 1050 and suggested several teams are interested in the player:

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The long and short of it for Kris Russell is that I think he’ll sign here in the next number of days, maybe next week, but maybe before the end of this week. [There are] multiple teams talking to him still. I don’t believe the Leafs are one of them. I think he’s more likely to take a one-year deal, or to get a one-year deal, than anything else, and go back to the free agent trough next summer and try to experience better luck than he did this year.

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If McKenzie’s supposition on term is correct, it would take much of the risk factor out of a Russell signing. Long-term deals stretching well into a player’s 30s can turn into albatross contracts, but a single-season pact doesn’t carry the same peril.  

Russell is an interesting player, one who has logged heavy minutes in recent years but has also been criticized for his team’s poor performance at five-on-five when he is on the ice.

Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports

Take his performance in Calgary.

In 2013-14, the Flames were one of the worst teams at controlling puck possession in the NHL, with a Corsi rating of just 46 percent. Russell managed to come in two points shy of even that mediocre total. In 2014-15, the Flames once again struggled to out-shoot their opponents, with a Corsi rating of 45 percent. Russell, again, lagged the team average by two points.

Last season saw the same pattern developing, though it’s worth noting Russell’s numbers improved modestly relative to his team after his move to Dallas. That increase, along with his earlier career performance, suggest the way he fit into the Flames system was potentially part of the problem with his statistical performance.

Despite his uptick with the Stars, however, those totals suggest Russell is best penciled in to a more sheltered role at even strength, perhaps on the third pairing, where he could face easier matchups. Yet even as a third-pair defenceman, Russell has some additional utility.

For one, he’s an offensive producer. A player with genuine ability to influence the attack is generally more valuable than his shot metrics, and while it would be dangerous to overstate Russell’s abilities in this area, he does have some scoring touch.

That also makes him useful on the power play, where on a per-minute basis he has been as effective a point-producer as Drew Doughty or Tyson Barrie over the last three seasons. He’s a quality second-unit performer.

He’s also been used on the penalty kill. Russell has taken a regular shift in Calgary over the last few seasons, and the Flames have done a solid job of limiting shots against when he’s on the ice. He’s reasonably effective there.

Finally, there’s the likelihood that if nothing else he’ll have value at the trade deadline. We were sharply critical of the Stars’ decision to acquire Russell at the deadline last season. Had Dallas won just one more playoff game, the Stars would have surrendered a first-round pick, young NHLer Jyrki Jokipakka and prospect Brett Pollock for his rights. That’s a lot.

For a team looking for a top-four lynchpin, Russell isn’t likely to be the answer. But for a team in need of a puck-mover on its third pair and a little help on special teams, Russell’s a reasonable bet. On a one-year contract, he’s also a safe one. Assuming the dollars aren’t ludicrous, he should be a good addition somewhere.

Statistical information courtesy Stats.HockeyAnalysis.com and Hockey-Reference.com. 

Jonathan Willis covers the NHL for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter for more of his work.