Kris Russell
Kris Russell was born in Caroline, Alberta, Canada on May 2nd, 1987 and is the Hockey Player. At the age of 36, Kris Russell biography, profession, age, height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, measurements, education, career, dating/affair, family, news updates, and networth are available.
At 36 years old, Kris Russell has this physical status:
Kris Russell (born May 2, 1987) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman presently playing for the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL).
In the 2005 NHL Entry Draft, he was drafted in the third round, 67th overall, by the Columbus Blue Jackets and spent four seasons with the club before moving to the St. Louis Blues, Calgary Flames, and Dallas Stars.
He has appeared in TPS and Oulun Kärpät in the Finnish Liiga. Russell was a top defenceman in junior hockey with the Western Hockey League (WHL)'s Medicine Hat Tigers.
He was a member of two WHL championship teams and was named twice as the WHL's best defenceman twice, and he was voted the WHL's Most Valuable Player in 2006–07.
Russell has appeared for Canada on several occasions: he was a member of two gold medal-winning teams at the World Junior Championships and has participated in two World Championships.
Russell is well-known for his stamina and willingness to block shots.
He and his twin brother Ryan played together in Columbus for a brief period.
Early life
Kris Russell was born in Red Deer, Alberta, on May 2, 1987. Ryan, who was born to mother Terri and father Doug, has a identical twin brother, Ryan. They grew up in Caroline's nearby village. Doug was a professional bull fighter on Alberta's rodeo circuit, protecting bulls while they escape the arena after their rides by distracting the bulls, and he appeared at four times at the Canadian Finals Rodeo, but retired before his sons were born. Kris was coached by his father for a large portion of his minor hockey career, but Doug was moved to defense by Doug when he was ten years old.
Playing career
Russell was chosen by the Medicine Hat Tigers for their eighth round pick and 138th overall at the 2002 Western Hockey League (WHL) Bantam Draft. Ryan, who was a member of the Kootenay Ice, was a fan of the Tigers for four seasons, and it was the first time he met Ryan, a Kootenay Ice player, in a match. Kris referred to the occasion as "fun," while noting that neither party was attempting to hurt their brother. In his first season, 2003–04, and his last, 2006–07, he was a member of league championship teams, 2003–04. Russell was highly regarded in his junior work. He has been called to a WHL All-Star Team three times and has twice been named as the league's Most Sportsmanlike Player of the week. In both 2005–06 and 2006–07, he twice led the league in goal scoring and received the Bill Hunter Memorial Trophy as the best defenseman in the league. Russell was also named the winner of the Four Broncos Memorial Trophy as the WHL's most outstanding player in his final WHL season, and he was named Canada's Defenceman of the Year.
Russell twice represented Canada as a member of the national junior team on international level. He appeared for the gold medal-winning Canadians in the 2006 World Junior Championships, where he scored one goal and three assists. Russell Toews for the team lead with four goals as Canada defeated the gold medal again in the 2007 tournament.
Russell was chosen by the Columbus Blue Jackets as their third round pick, 67th overall, at the 2005 NHL Entry Draft. He was often told he was too small to play in the NHL because he was shorter and lighter than his peers in minor hockey. Russell, who stands at five foot, ten inches tall, defied expectations and earned a spot with the Blue Jackets in his first professional season, 2007–08. In a 4–0 victory over the Anaheim Ducks on October 5, 2007, he made his NHL debut and scored his first point with an assist. Russell's first two NHL goals came against goaltender Mike Smith on January 22, 2008, who was named as the first player in a 4-2 victory over the Dallas Stars. In 67 games for Columbus, he earned ten points and finished with ten.
Russell spent the bulk of the 2008–09 season with the Blue Jackets, but they also played 14 games with their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch. In his first four NHL playoff games, he had 21 points in 66 games with Columbus, as well as a goal and an assist. He led the Blue Jackets' defencemen with seven goals in 2009–10 and set a record high with 23 points in 73 games in 2010–11. He was a teammate of his brother when the Blue Jackets acquired Ryan before the 2011-12 season. Russell did not play 12 games for Columbus during his career, until he was traded to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for Nikita Nikitin in a trade on November 11, 2011. Russell and Ken Hitchcock, who had previously worked with him in Columbus before being named head coach of the Blues, were reunited in the team.
Russell scored 12 points in 55 games combined between Columbus and St. Louis, his second Stanley Cup playoff appearance, after appearing in nine post-season games with St. Louis. He joined TPS in the Finnish SM-liiga as a result of a labour dispute in the 2012-13 NHL season. He suffered a slight tear to his Medial collateral ligament ligament early in the season and took some time before returning to TPS. He played 14 points in 15 games before returning to St. Louis for the first time in the NHL season. Russell played seven points in 33 games with the Blues, but the Blues dropped down the Blues' depth chart and did not appear in any 2013 playoff games for the team.
Following the season, a restricted free agent for the Blues expressed doubt that he will be one of the club's top-five defensemen. He was put on waivers and went unclaimed. Russell was acquired by the Calgary Flames on July 5, 2013, in exchange for a fifth round pick at the 2014 NHL Entry Draft, and he has committed to a one-year, $1.5 million contract.
Russell was leaned on heavily in his first year in Calgary, establishing him as a top-four defensively-oriented defenseman. The Flames' second pairing was most active with Dennis Wideman during the season's regular lineup. Russell set new career highs in assists and points in 2013-2014, tying 22 and 29 in those respective categories. With 201, he came in second second on the team in blocked shots, only behind Chris Butler (211).
Russell and the Flames increased dramatically in 2014-2015, as well as the Flames. He set new career highs in assists and points with 30 and 34, respectively, and he led the NHL in blocked shots with 283. This record currently sits as the most shots blocked by a single player in a season. Russell emerged as a temporary top-pairing defenseman in lieu as the Flames advanced to a playoff spot, replacing star and captain Mark Giordano late in the season, creating a volatile shutdown tandem with Wideman once more. Russell was a tenacious force throughout the Flames' six-game victory over the Vancouver Canucks in the first round, with the remainder of the series extending into the 2015 playoffs. In Game 1 of the series, the Flames had trailed until just past the midway mark, and Russell was able to tie the game, beating Canucks goaltender Eddie Läck to put the Flames up by a single goal with less than 30 seconds remaining. Russell had seven points in the post-season, third on the Flames, and third on the Flames.
In 2015–16, the Flames regressed, as did Russell. The Flames dropped in the standings and missed the 2016 playoffs, and his assist and point totals plummeted to only 11 and 15. With this fate being adamant, Flames general manager Brad Treliving attempted to sell some of his assets before the trade deadline. Russell was traded to the Dallas Stars in exchange for defenseman Jyrki Jopakka, prospect Brett Pollock, and a conditional second-round pick (ultimately used to select Dillon Dubé).
Russell was relying on to play top-pairing minutes in Dallas, but the team fell out in the second round to the St. Louis Blues. Russell was kept goalless in the playoffs, and he was not re-signed by the Stars in the off-season.
Russell Russell finally signed as a free agent to a one-year, $3.1 million deal for the 2016–17 season on October 7, 2016, with the Edmonton Oilers having made cap space in the trade of Nail Yakupov. Russell had limited offensive success, but was drafted as the team's de facto fourth defenseman alongside fellow veteran Andrej Sekera. Russell missed in the second round to the Anaheim Ducks for the second year in a row, much like the Flames in 2015.
The Oilers reported on June 23, 2017, that Russell had re-signed Russell to a four-year deal worth $4 million per season, which had been boosted by his play. Russell led the NHL's all-time leader in shots blocked with 1,999 during a game against the Vegas Golden Knights in November 2021.