Patrick Russell, the undrafted free agent that was signed by the organization for the 2016-17 season, has been a topic of conversation this week so it seemed fitting that he would be the next prospect looked at in our series. Russell has spent the last two seasons with Bakersfield and was recently re-signed to a one-year extension back in June with the expectation being that he will continue to progress with the Condors. So who is Patrick Russell? Today, we’ll examine that very question.

BIO:

NEWS AND SCOUTING REPORTS

As with any prospect, we wanted to find varying opinions and analysis on what he provides and what fans can expect not only now but in the future. With that in mind, we’ve compiled a list of scouting reports from throughout the years that will give us a better idea of what the organization has in him.

After wrapping up the World Championships with Denmark, Bruce McCurdy evaluated Russell’s performance at the Cult of Hockey:

For the second straight year, Russell played all 68 games for Bakersfield Condors, and showed enough to earn a one-year extension at season’s end. He improved his boxcars across the board from a paltry 8-9-17, -8, 22 PiM to 14-13-27, -1, 48 PiM. That was good enough for fourth on the team in goals and fifth in assists. He showed enough to earn the invite to the World Championships, which were played right in his native country of Denmark. By eye he played an effective grinding game, though he failed to find the scoresheet in 7 games.

From Jameson Ewasiuk at Dobber Prospects:

On June 8th the Oilers re-signed 25-year-old prospect, Patrick Russell to a one year contract extension. The deal comes after Russell completed his second season with the Oilers’ farm team, the Bakersfield Condors. Last season with the Condors, the Danish winger nearly doubled his goals and points output from his rookie AHL season and finished with 14 goals and 27 points in 68 games. With Bakersfield’s lack of veteran offensive producers, Russell could potentially find himself in a top six role this season.

Before signing his first deal with the Oilers, SB Nation’s College Hockey site listed Russell as the 68th best NHL Prospect that was playing in the NCAA, and the sixth best college free agent available.

Russell is a big bodied power forward that excels in the offensive zone. He’s not a fantastic skater, but his ability to move his feet and find open space in tough areas in front of the net make him a dangerous offensive threat. He has improved in his second season to become a more well-rounded player, by becoming better defensively and playing on the penalty kill for St. Cloud State.

In May of this year, the Edmonton Oilers posted an interview with Patrick Russell about his style of play, future, and the growth of Danish hockey. From that interview:

“I like to play hard, get to the net, use my body to my advantage. I want to create a little more offense and try to take the puck to the net with me a little more, but most important is to play good defense. For our team, we have to play good defense and hope it will help us create good offense.”

“In Bakersfield, I play a lot of penalty kill. I don’t play any here. So, I’m trying to focus on playing strong 5-on-5 and on the power play, get to the front of the net and use my body, tip pucks, block the goalie’s eyes, win battles, those kind of things.”

A few years back, Mick Hatten, who covered the St. Cloud Times when he played there, described Russell’s game:

Russell is 6-1 and 205 pounds, but seems to play bigger than his size lists. He plays a physical game and enjoys playing along the boards or in front of the net, two places where contact is nearly constant.

PRE-DRAFT RANKINGS

• No rankings available

VIDEO AND HIGHLIGHTS

Russell’s 2017-18 highlights with the Bakersfield Condors

Patrick Russell vs Brendan Lemieux

Russell’s game-winning goal vs the Manitoba Moose

Russell’s exit interview after the Condors season wrapped up

CAREER STATS

Stats provided by Elite Prospects

Previously:

• All About Caleb Jones
• All About Kirill Maksimov
• All About Olivier Rodrigue
• All About Evan Bouchard
• All About Ryan McLeod