Rank your team's defensemen based on their play this season

[Pure Slaughter Value]

Hasn't Trouba played the hardest minutes of any Rangers D, by far? Thought I read that somewhere, maybe The Athletic.

 

[Howboutthempanthers]

Ekblad


Weegar
(Tie) Stralman - Stillman
Matheson
Yandle
Brown (Although he might have played a little better than Yandle. I don't want to seem like I'm hating on Yandle too much)
Pysyk. Although he didn't play much there. But has since played forward, and has been a pleasant surprise for the role he plays.

 

[quityerwhinin]

1) Alex Pietrangelo - Enough said honestly

2) Colton Parayko - I was disappointed with his ability while not in his own zone, but then January hit and he was playing great in all areas of the ice. He could easily be a #1 defenseman on most teams if he can keep his offensive game the way it was for the past two months.

3) Vince Dunn - He's still developing into a brilliant top-4 player with his puck transition and skating ability. I don't think he can be relied upon as a top-pairing player unless he's paired with a Parayko-level player, but Dunn is still a great player that I think will be hitting between 30 - 40 points a season in the not too distant future.

4) Jay Bouwmeester - Before his cardiac episode, he was a solid, foundational defensive piece on the back-end. He gives up a lot of shots against, but most chances are lower-quality chances because he does his best to limit the higher danger shots the best he can. And this year, he was a sturdy player for the PK, which most fans have noticed his loss.

5) Justin Faulk - I'm still a believer of his and think this year is more of an outlier than anything predictive. But this year is his worst statistical season of his career and he's been a disappointment for sure. But strangely, he's become one of the best PKers on the team, so he is contributing in some capacity.

6) Robert Bortuzzo - As a #6 - #7 defenseman on the team, you really can't ask for more from him. He's noticeably lesser than anyone named before him, but he chips in whenever he's called upon. This year, he's been more of the same of what I come to expect from him. Nothing spectacular or worth mention, but solid enough to be content.

7) Carl Gunnarsson - This is probably the one returning defenseman who seems behind where he was last year. Everyone else is playing about what I expected them to, but Gunnarsson seems a step behind this year. His injuries must be catching up to him because he looks off. Thankfully, he's not a "relied upon" piece, but this current contract he's on might be his last if he continues to play this way.

Others worth mentioning but haven't played much:

Marco Scandella - The price paid to acquire his is still steep. However, he's slotted in very well onto the blueline. He's been a fine replacement for Bouwmeester. He's played so well that I wouldn't be surprised to see him re-signed in the offseason, especially with the uncertainty surrounding the Bouwmeester-saga. Once (if) he plays more, I think you can just slot him into where Bouwmeester's rank is.

Niko Mikkola - I've been excited to see this guy play ever since 2016, and his start to his NHL career is exactly what I would hope. He looks to be a towering defensive presence for years to come. While his competition to make the team is still, especially with Scandella in the potential mix, I don't doubt he'll make the team.

I'd flip the first two, then flip #'s 3 & 4. Love Pietrangelo, he's been good offensively, but he hasn't been great in his own end.

 

[flyerslducks]

Interesting

I thought ghost looked impressive vs Bruins

i love ghost BUT this year i am going to be realistic and say how it is. Realistically and i definitely think next year it will be like this:

provorov
sanheim
ghost/myers/niskanen fighting for the next 3 positions.

Ghost, while he has been bad this year, can still put up close to 40 points in a "bad" year last year. He still is a great possession player and is awesome in the neutral zone. He wasn't put in a position to succeed at all this year. He never played on a powerplay that was set up correctly (As it has been for the past 7 years with giroux on the left and voracek on the right). As evident in that bruins game, he can still get to that level so it'll be interesting to see what happens. I still think the flyers will try to trade him (unless he is doing well and we are going for it in the playoffs next year) so we don't lose him to seattle for nothing.

 

[FanTheFlames]

I always like to see how everyone views their teams players and we all need something to talk about right now, so let's have at it.

for the

1. Mark Giordano - this should be obvious for anyone who watches the Flames. The defense was a nightmare when he was injured. A big step back from last season but still a #1 defenseman.

2. Rasmus Andersson - he's already a lot better defensively than I expected, but also behind what I was hoping for offensively. He's got a huge slapshot but he never wants to use it. He's been probably the most consistent defenseman for the Flames this year. Very steady and you're never worried when he's out there.

3. T.J. Brodie - he's been a pretty different player this year when compared to the last few seasons. A lot less mistake-prone but also less dynamic.

4. Noah Hanifin - I thought he was the Flames' best defenseman for the first month of the season, but he's had some really rough patches. Matt Benning made him look like an idiot en route to a goal just a few weeks ago. He's looked a lot better away from Hamonic and with Andersson as a partner.

5. Travis Hamonic - very disappointing season. He's still tough as nails, but he's not all that physical anymore. Him and Hanifin went from a very solid 2nd pairing last season to a mess this year. He's still a great penalty killer. I'm sure he won't be back next season.

6. Oliver Kylington - I'm disappointed that management keeps making moves to force him out of the lineup. He had been playing great recently and hasn't played since the trade deadline. Arguably the best skater on the Flames, he has lots of talent but it feels like it's being coached out of him. He's been pretty passive this season with the puck, but also a lot steadier defensively.

7. Michael Stone - shouldn't have been getting games in over Kylington. He's basically the opposite of Kylington, big and tough and slow.

Other guys that haven't played enough for me to really rank:

Erik Gustafsson - even more skilled than I was expecting, though I'm not confident in his defensive ability.

Derek Forbort - barely even noticeable most games, which might actually be a good thing. A good complement to Gustafsson.

Alexander Yelesin - love his physicality. Seems like he's looking to hit someone any chance he gets. Puck skills aren't NHL-level though.

Brandon Davidson - I guess he's not on the team anymore, but I don't really know why he was in the first place.

Id go

1) Giordano
2) Brodie
3) Andersson
4) Hanifin
5) Gustafsson
6) Hamonic
7) kylington
8) Forbort
9) Stone
10) Yelesin
11) Davidson

I think Kylington needs another offseason to go work on his strength before hes a solidified top 6 as he gets pushed around from time to time. I also think Hamonic has been struggling and Gustafsson has been a good addition to the team offensively taking a load off of guys like Gaudreau, Tkachuk and Brodie in terms of breaking into the zone. I also like Brodie in terms of playing confidently this season and we have greatly outscored our opponents with Brodie on the ice in comparison to any other defenceman and while i think Andersson will surpass Brodie soon i do think hes a season away in terms of confidence and using his shot to better the team

 

[Diamonddog01]

Hughes
Tanev
Edler / Myers
Fantenberg
Stecher

 

[jaywills1020]

Adam Fox-He's been excellent in all zones. Much better defensively than advertised. Probably already a top pairing defenseman, and maybe already a 1D.

Tony DeAngelo-He's had an excellent season. Offensively, he's one of our best players. Defensively, he's held his own, which is good enough when you are as good offensively as he is.

Ryan Lindgren-Only the second best rookie defenseman on his own defensive pairing, but he's been excellent. He didn't even make the team out of training camp, although he should've, but has been our best defensive presence since being recalled and he's improved his puck-moving.

Jacob Trouba-He's probably as talented as any of our defensemen, but he's had a bad season. Playing with Skjei didn't help the first half of the season. They paired terribly, but Trouba's defensive game has slipped some with getting beat 1v1 and taking bad penalties. His passing vision is also pretty bad.

Marc Staal-He's bad and costs the team at times. He's probably not even a 6D anymore, but he does have some stretches where he can defend adequately. His biggest problem is anytime he has the puck. He can't skate it out of the zone and can't pass it. He usually ends up going to the corner, boxing out forecheckers, and waiting for teammates to help him move it.

Brendan Smith-Absolute disaster of a defensemen. Awful hockey IQ with plenty of errors all over the ice. Takes a lot of bad penalties. Doesn't defend at much better than a mediocre level and doesn't provide any offense. He's not terrible at moving the puck with skating or passing, but he's not great at that either.

As a rangers fan I’m wondering if I watched the same team as you. 1. Fox is NOT a number 1 Dman. He’s very good but let’s be honest, he’s a number 1 on this team but not on most other teams.
2. How is Smith a disaster and Staal is bad? Staal is the disaster. Smith hasn’t even been a Dman the whole season. At least we’re getting some versatility out of him. Add the fact he will fight for his teammates and he surpasses anything Staal has done. Staal. You hit the nail on the head about his puck handling. If that puck is on his stick it pretty much means a turnover is about to happen.

 

[LMFAO]

Klefbom
Nurse
Bear
Larsson
Jones / Benning
Russell

 

[teravaineSAROS]

Hasn't Trouba played the hardest minutes of any Rangers D, by far? Thought I read that somewhere, maybe The Athletic.

We don't value that here. We prefer sheltered players with good offensive stats.

 

[aufheben]

Hasn't Trouba played the hardest minutes of any Rangers D, by far? Thought I read that somewhere, maybe The Athletic.

He’s gotten very rough usage, and has had to do it with Libor Hajek, Brady Skjei, and Brendan Smith as partners. No joke, Brendan Smith is possibly the best partner Trouba has had in New York so far, and the guy was playing 4th line wing for most of the season. Lindgren-Fox have lightened the load recently.

Fox and DeAngelo have absolutely been better though.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

As a rangers fan I’m wondering if I watched the same team as you. 1. Fox is NOT a number 1 Dman. He’s very good but let’s be honest, he’s a number 1 on this team but not on most other teams.
2. How is Smith a disaster and Staal is bad? Staal is the disaster. Smith hasn’t even been a Dman the whole season. At least we’re getting some versatility out of him. Add the fact he will fight for his teammates and he surpasses anything Staal has done. Staal. You hit the nail on the head about his puck handling. If that puck is on his stick it pretty much means a turnover is about to happen.

Maybe you haven't then. I can only speak about myself. I couldn't vouch for what you've watched.

Fox passes the eye test as a 1D, and statistically some measures rank him as one of the best defensemen in the NHL this season. I don't think it's a stretch to say he might already be a 1D.

I'm by no means a fan of Staal, but I think some of you are so anchored into thinking he's the worst thing there is that you don't consider when the results say otherwise. Hajek was even worse than Staal was earlier this season. They both sucked in almost every regard, but Staal does not take the same number of penalties and show the same utter lack of positioning. We've seen the same thing with Smith since he returned to defense. Like Hajek, Smith has terrible discipline to go along with terrible positioning. Smith might skate better than Staal and move the puck a little better, but it's not enough to make up for a difference in ability to defend. Staal's ability to defend isn't that good anymore, but it's mostly because of his lack of physical skills, not because he can't think the game.

I also find it hilarious that you are applauding Smith's versatility this season. If you suited Hank up at forward, it doesn't make him versatile. Smith's been brutal as a forward and as a defenseman, so I don't think we should call that versatility. Versatility should only be applauded when the versatility leads to productive play. If Smith wasn't so bad as a defenseman and had played to the level of the contract he should've never been given, he wouldn't have had the chance to play forward. He was only playing forward because he wasn't in the top 6 on defense.

 

[wintersej]

Lindgren?

Sucks Bruins lost him for a rental

Meh, they have the version of Lindgren that can play both sides in Lauzon.

 

[aufheben]

We don't value that here. We prefer sheltered players with good offensive stats.

If DeAngelo needs to be sheltered from anyone, it's his partner Marc Staal.

 

[teravaineSAROS]

If DeAngelo needs to be sheltered from anyone, it's his partner Marc Staal.

I didn't mean it as a slight towards DeAngelo

 

[Ishtabeat]

Lindgren?

Sucks Bruins lost him for a rental

Crazy that Rangers got Strome, Lindgren, and K’Andre Miller out of the Nash trade. Strome has been PPG, Lindgren has been a stud in the top 4 in the mold of McQuaid, and K’Andre Miller has incredible upside. Though we did give a mid 2nd Round pick along with Boston’s first to move up for Miller. Gorts is a beast

 

[rocketdan9]

Crazy that Rangers got Strome, Lindgren, and K’Andre Miller out of the Nash trade. Strome has been PPG, Lindgren has been a stud in the top 4 in the mold of McQuaid, and K’Andre Miller has incredible upside. Though we did give a mid 2nd Round pick along with Boston’s first to move up for Miller. Gorts is a beast

wait how did you get Strome from the Nash trade?

 

[Ishtabeat]

wait how did you get Strome from the Nash trade?

Spooner. Rangers got back 1st+Spooner+Lindgren+Beleskey @ 50%. 1st was used to move up for Miller. Spooner went PPG the rest of the season with us then we traded him early next season for Strome when both were struggling

 

[BrickNHL]

Makar - Like having MacKinnon on defense

Girard - Could easily be #1, steady and so good at moving the puck out of the zone.

Graves - A little inconsistent and prone to dumb pinches especially when he should let Makar do that stuff. Overall hes been solid and a pleasant surprise.

Johnson - Still solid defensively but has stretches where he absolutely can't handle the puck. Looked pretty good when Makar was out and before the virus hit. Hopefully it was just a confidence thing with him.

Cole - Pretty solid and consistent overall when he plays within his ability but still has small stretches where he forgets he is a stay at home defenseman.

Zadorov - Can't cover anyone in front of the net and when his hitting and physicality disappears like it has, he becomes pretty meh. You're doing pretty well though if he is your worst regular defenseman though.

Barberio - Barely played and played forward in like half of his games lol but solid for a #7 defenseman.

 

[rocketdan9]

Spooner. Rangers got back 1st+Spooner+Lindgren+Beleskey @ 50%. 1st was used to move up for Miller. Spooner went PPG the rest of the season with us then we traded him early next season for Strome when both were struggling

True. Good find in Strome

One made it and the other is no longer in the league (new scenery)

 

[DistantThunderRep]

Only Included players who played 30 games this season
1. Victor Hedman
2. Mikhail Sergachev
3. Kevin Shattenkirk
4. Ryan McDonagh
5. Erik Cernak
6. Jan Rutta
7. Braydon Coburn

In my opinion, I would rank them like this. If McDonagh played more games, I would probably have him over Shattenkirk. Shattenkirk was pretty good offensively this season, obviously not the best defensively.

How freaking dare you. Rutta was easily third.

 

[HockeyWooot]

Hughes

Edler
Tanev

Myers
Fantenberg
Stecher
Benn