Week 14: Fantasy top 50 defenseman rankings for 2017-18

Each week during the regular season, NHL.com has you covered with an overview of the fantasy defenseman landscape. With production trends, injury news and top 50 rankings based on performance and upside in standard Yahoo leagues, fantasy owners should use this information as a basis for roster decision-making.

MORE FANTASY RANKINGS:
Top 100 forwards
|
Top 25 goalies

TRENDING UP

Jordan Oesterle, CHI: If you read
NHL.com's fantasy buzz from Tuesday
, you're no stranger to this Chicago Blackhawks defenseman. With another strong performance against the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday (two primary assists; one on power play), Oesterle enters the top-50 defenseman rankings for the first time. The Western Michigan University product has solidified himself on the Blackhawks top pair alongside Duncan Keith. Oesterle led all Blackhawks defensemen with 3:49 on the power play, which went 4-for-6 against the Senators. Chicago's power play has struggled (16.4 percent, 25th), but, with the new energy Oesterle is bringing from the point, look for it to improve in the second half. Oesterle's fantasy ownership (23 percent in Yahoo) has risen by 18 percent over the past day.
Seth Jones, CBJ: When defenseman Zach Werenski sustained an undisclosed injury Dec. 20, his defense partner Jones rose to the occasion. In Werenski's four-game absence, Jones saw a scoring uptick with two goals and three assists in 27:33 per game. Jones has 11 points (two goals, nine assists) and is averaging 26:20 over his past 10 games, helping him join the fantasy top 15 defenseman rankings. During this 10-game stretch, Jones has five power-play points, more than he had in the first 33 games (three). Werenski remains a valued fantasy asset by leading the League in goals by defensemen (11), but it's worth noting his shooting percentage (9.6) will likely revert back closer to the 5.9 percent from his rookie season. Since Werenski returned, he and Jones are playing together on the first power-play unit, which has plenty of room for improvement (12.3; worst in NHL).

Jared Spurgeon, MIN: One week after returning to the top 50 defenseman rankings, Spurgeon has moved up 12 spots after scoring at a point-per-game clip over the past seven games (two goals, five assists). The Minnesota Wild defenseman now ranks 15th in points per game among defensemen (0.65). He has rebounded after a recent seven-game pointless streak with seven points (two goals, five assists; two PPP) in his past seven games. Spurgeon ranks 12th among defensemen in average ice time (25:03) and is skating alongside Ryan Suter, who plays 26:54 per game (2nd in NHL behind Drew Doughty, 27:10). Spurgeon is also deployed on the top power-play unit, but needs to find consistency to solidify a spot in the top 40.

TRENDING DOWN

Kevin Shattenkirk, NYR: In his past 10 games, Shattenkirk has played fewer than 20 minutes per game and has no goals and two power-play assists. The New York Rangers defenseman was eighth at the position in NHL.com's preseason fantasy rankings, but, over the past 30 days, ranks 45th among defensemen based on standard-category performance. Shattenkirk remains in the top 25 because of his high power-play ice time (3:17 per game). Shattenkirk played more than eight minutes on the power play against the Blackhawks on Jan. 3, but did not have a point. If Ryan McDonagh continues to struggle scoring (no goals on 58 shots on goal), the Rangers will be counting on Shattenkirk to carry them offensively down the stretch in the race for the Stanley Cup Playoffs in the Metropolitan Division. After
the bye week
, the Rangers will play 24 of their remaining 40 games on the road.
Brandon Montour, ANA: When Cam Fowler (49 percent owned) returned from a knee injury Nov. 20, it was implied that some of the Anaheim Ducks' younger defensemen would lose ice time. Montour (48 percent) has not skated more than 20 minutes in any game since Dec. 23. While this may not be a concern for some fantasy owners, fellow Ducks defenseman Josh Manson (43 percent) has seen at least 20 minutes in three of the past four games and is scoring at a point-per-game pace over the span. Montour plays on the third pairing alongside veteran Francois Beauchemin. Despite receiving favorable offensive zone starts (51 percent), that pair has not produced a point in the past five games. Fantasy owners should also be wary that Anaheim ranks 27th in power-play goals with 20. That said, don't drop Montour yet because he plays on the second power-play unit and his offensive zone deployment could bode well for power-play points down the stretch.

TOP 50 DEFENSEMAN RANKINGS

Standard Yahoo categories include goals, assists, plus/minus, PIMs, PPP and SOG for skaters. ... Value has been quantified based on factors including but not limited to past production, defense pairs, power-play usage, team's offseason changes, injury history, age, sleeper, bounce-back or breakout potential, anticipated regression, contract status, Yahoo ADP and overall upside for the rest of the season. ... Any players with day-to-day injury concerns (DTD) are noted. NEW - INJ. indicates a player who has returned from injury and rejoined the rankings.
1. Brent Burns, SJS (SAME)
2. Victor Hedman, TBL (DTD)
3. John Klingberg, DAL (+1)
4. P.K. Subban, NSH (+1)
5. Drew Doughty, LAK (-2)
6. John Carlson, WSH (+1)
7. Erik Karlsson, OTT (+1)
8. Alex Pietrangelo, STL (-2)
9. Shayne Gostisbehere, PHI (+1)
10. Roman Josi, NSH (-1)
11. Dustin Byfuglien, WPG (SAME)
12. Kris Letang, PIT (SAME)
13. Morgan Rielly, TOR (+2)
14. Seth Jones, CBJ (+9)
15. Zach Werenski, CBJ (+2)
16. Mark Giordano, CGY (+6)
17. Mikhail Sergachev, TBL (-4)
18. Duncan Keith, CHI (+1)
19. Colton Parayko, STL (+1)
20. Torey Krug, BOS (-4)
21. Nick Leddy, NYI (-3)
22. Charlie McAvoy, BOS (-1)
23. Kevin Shattenkirk, NYR (-9)
24. Jake Muzzin, LAK (DTD)
25. Dougie Hamilton, CGY (SAME)
26. Rasmus Ristolainen, BUF (+2)
27. Cam Fowler, ANA (+2)
28. Ryan Suter, MIN (+2)
29. Will Butcher, NJD (-3)
30. Erik Johnson, COL (+1)
31. Tyler Myers, WPG (+4)
32. Ivan Provorov, PHI (+8)
33. Aaron Ekblad, FLA (SAME)
34. Shea Theodore, VGK (-7)
35. Ryan Ellis, NSH (+2)
36. Mike Green, DET (+3)
37. Jared Spurgeon, MIN (+12)
38. Jordan Oesterle, CHI (NEW)
39. Keith Yandle, FLA (-1)
40. Oliver Ekman-Larsson, ARI (-8)
41. Brandon Montour, ANA (-7)
42. Justin Faulk, CAR (-6)
43. Samuel Girard, COL (NEW)
44. Sami Vatanen, NJD (NEW)
45. Josh Manson, ANA (NEW)
46. Ryan McDonagh, NYR (-4)
47. Colin Miller, VGK (-4)
48. Matt Dumba, MIN (-1)
49. Justin Schultz, PIT (-5)
50. Anton Stralman, TBL (-2)
Dropped out:Matt Niskanen (WSH); Esa Lindell (DAL); Oscar Klefbom (EDM); Mattias Ekholm (NSH)
Key injuries: Tyson Barrie (COL); Shea Weber (MTL)
READ: Last week's Top 50 defenseman rankings