Breaking: Edmonton Oilers agree to term with key player.

Good move by Peter Chiarelli

The expansion draft might be the talk of the town these days in the NHL, but negotiation are going on behind the scene to lock down a few UFAs too.

On Thursday, E.J. Hradek Sr Reporter for NHL Network reported he heard that defenseman Kris Russell will be re-signing with Edmonton Oilers.

It is now official.

As reported by Pierre Lebrun The Edmonton Oilers agree to term with Kris Russel for 4 years/ $16M.

He was a third round selection, 67th overall, of the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft and played four seasons with the team before moving on to the St. Louis Blues, the Calgary Flames and the Dallas Stars.

Russell has been playing in the NHL for about 10 years now and earned a decent reputation as a responsible defenseman. He might not be the best puck mover around, but for a reasonable price you can hire a responsible and experimented defenseman to build the team.