When the Montreal Canadiens acquired Shea Weber in a trade with the Nashville Predators for P.K. Subban on June 29, the general consensus was the Predators won out by landing the younger franchise defenseman.
But, nearly four months later, it is Weber and the Canadiens who are rolling at 5-0-1, and the veteran looks as good as he ever has.
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Weber, who slipped into the fifth round of standard Yahoo league drafts this season, has two goals and five assists in six games, his best start since he had seven points in six games in 2008-09. He went on to finish that season with 23 goals and 53 points.
Weber's category coverage thus far is making him one of the most complete fantasy assets. He has a plus-10 rating, two power-play points, eight penalty minutes and 14 shots on goal. He also has 17 hits and 11 blocks, and leads the Canadiens in average ice time (26:14 per game), power play time (4:04 per game) and shorthanded time (3:17 per game).
The Canadiens' first power-play unit, made up of forwards Max Pacioretty, Alex Galchenyuk, Brendan Gallagher and Alexander Radulov, should give Weber plenty of opportunity to earn points playing with the extra man. Though many expected Weber to drop off this season, he is universally owned and should be a fantasy trade target if you don't have him on your roster.
Weber is far from the only veteran defenseman performing at a level reminiscent of his younger self. Brian Campbell (35 percent owned) is skating on the Chicago Blackhawks' top pair with Duncan Keith and getting time on the second power-play unit. Campbell was held off the scoresheet in his first three games, but has a goal and five points in his past four. He's a plus-6 with two PIMs, one PPP and 10 SOG while averaging 17:36 minutes per game, 2:09 on the power play. It is worth noting Keith was selected among the top 100 on average and has six points in seven games. Campbell, not drafted until the 14th round on average, is providing similar production to jump 10 spots in our rankings.
Lastly, Johnny Boychuk (55 percent owned) of the New York Islanders didn't garner as much fantasy attention this season compared to recent ones, but that could be changing. He has goals in back-to-back games and four points in six games. He has strong peripherals with a plus-2, one PPP, 15 SOG, 14 hits and 16 blocks.
