Late last night, after all the commotion died down around Washington re-signing star defenseman John Carlson to an eight-year, $64MM contract, the Detroit Red Wings quietly made a trade. The Red Wings sent minor league defenseman Robbie Russo to the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for a conditional seventh-round pick in 2019. Russo, along with Xavier Ouellet who is expected to be bought out, ran out of time to impress the Detroit staff and was taking up a valuable roster spot.
Russo, 25, played well in the minor leagues once again for the Grand Rapids Griffins, but wasn’t given a chance at the NHL level. The smooth skating defenseman has never been very well regarded in the defensive zone, but has produced so well at the other end of the rink it’s not surprising a team like Arizona would give him a shot. He’s currently on the last season of a two-year two-way contract, and at the very least he’ll add another weapon to the Tucson Roadrunners.
It doesn’t seem likely that the Coyotes will have much of a need for Russo in the NHL, and if he doesn’t play in another 61 games this season he’ll be eligible for Group VI unrestricted free agency next summer. That seems like the most likely scenario, which may be what the conditions on the draft pick are tied to.