Russell will likely take on a more significant role with the Oilers missing three defensemen to injury.
Darnell Nurse (finger) and Slater Koekkoek (lower body) are both out for multiple weeks, and Duncan Keith (upper body) was injured in Tuesday's 4-1 loss to the Stars. Russell was forced to play 23:13 in the contest, by far his highest ice time of the season. With the Oilers facing absences to their three best left-shot blueliners, Russell will likely need to play top-four minutes in the near term. He's collected an assist, 18 blocked shots, eight shots on net and a plus-2 rating in seven contests this year. He's unlikely to add much offense, but the boost in ice time could give him some short-term value in deep fantasy formats.