Kurtis Foster went from a sad story to an impressive comeback player over the last few years. The Edmonton Oilers will reward him with a bit of security. They signed the once-hobbled defenseman to a two year, $3.6 million deal today, according to sources including ESPN’s Pierre LeBrun.
When you consider all the big deals being thrown around for defensive players today, I think that this is a solid gamble. Critics will point out that Foster is still only a year or so removed from being a big health question mark. He broke his femur while tagging up for an icing and some wondered if he’d be back in the league. Yet when it comes to lower-tier free agents, it’s hard to find any players who don’t have a few flaws.
While he’s not the steadiest guy in his own end, Foster put up an impressive 42-point season in Tampa Bay. You have to wonder if this is a sign that Sheldon Souray is on his way out of Edmonton, considering the fact that Foster also has a booming slap shot from the point.
He might not be a shutdown defenseman, but with Ryan Whitney, Tom Gilbert, Foster and perhaps Souray, the Oilers could have a nice group of point producing defensemen. Sure, they might be mostly useless in their own end, but Edmonton will take what they can get at this point.
Kudos to Foster for turning his career around after some dark times.