Week 5: Fantasy defenseman top 50 rankings for 2018-19

NHL.com's fantasy hockey defenseman top 50 rankings are based on past production and expectations for the rest of the season in standard Yahoo leagues. For more fantasy hockey coverage, visit NHL.com/Fantasy.

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Top 200
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100 'F'
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25 'G'
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Tracker

Trending up:

Keith Yandle, FLA -- The Florida Panthers defenseman has five points (two goals, three assists) in his four-game point streak. Yandle has at least a point in nine of his 11 games and is 11th among defenseman with 25:04 per game. Right wing Mike Hoffman has the longest active point streak in the NHL (nine games), which increases Yandle's value further. If the Panthers can boost their power play (20 percent; 16th in NHL), Yandle would crack the top 15.
Thomas Chabot, OTT -- The Ottawa Senators defenseman is leading the position with 20 points (T-4th among all NHL skaters) in 15 games, including a five-game point streak with two multi-point games. The Senators have scored the fourth most goals in the NHL (52) and have more fantasy appeal with rookie left wing Brady Tkachuk returning against the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday.

Trending down:

Dougie Hamilton, CAR -- The Carolina Hurricanes defenseman finished tied for first in goals at the position last season (17) but has two goals through the first 15 games this season. Carolina's top power-play unit with elite forward Sebastian Aho is occupied by defenseman Justin Faulk, but Hamilton could be elevated to that spot with the Hurricanes on a five-game losing streak. The saving grace for fantasy owners is Hamilton's shot volume; he leads NHL defensemen with 64 shots on goal. If he sees an increased power-play role and his shooting percentage (3.1) reverts closer to his career average (5.8), the goals could start coming in bunches.
Duncan Keith, CHI -- The Chicago Blackhawks defenseman has yet to score a goal through the first 15 games of the season. Defensemen Henri Jokiharju and Brent Seabrook are fantasy-relevant and the Blackhawks have replaced coach Joel Quenneville with Jeremy Colliton, making Keith's value uncertain. The positive news for Keith owners is that he's been practicing on the top power-play unit with elite right wing Patrick Kane. If Colliton finds a way to boost the Blackhawks power play, Keith could regain top 30 value if he's involved.

TOP 50 DEFENSEMAN RANKINGS

Standard Yahoo categories include goals, assists, plus/minus, power-play points, shots on goal and now hits for skaters. ... Value has been quantified based on factors including but not limited to past production, defense pairs, power-play usage, injury history, sleeper, bounce-back or breakout potential, anticipated regression, age and contract status (potential 2019 UFA: \; RFA: \\). DTD indicates players with day-to-day injury concerns.
1. Brent Burns, SJS (SAME)
2. John Carlson, WSH (DTD)
3. Victor Hedman, TBL (NEW)
4. Erik Karlsson, SJS\ (-1)
5. P.K. Subban, NSH (+1)
6. Seth Jones, CBJ (+2)
7. Morgan Rielly, TOR (+2)
8. Kris Letang, PIT (-3)
9. Dustin Byfuglien, WPG (+1)
10. Torey Krug, BOS (-3)
11. Roman Josi, NSH (SAME)
12. Drew Doughty, LAK (SAME)
13. Tyson Barrie, COL (SAME)
14. Mark Giordano, CGY (+1)
15. Thomas Chabot, OTT (+2)
16. Keith Yandle, FLA (+3)
17. Matt Dumba, MIN (+1)
18. Oliver Ekman-Larsson, ARI (+2)
19. Dougie Hamilton, CAR (-5)
20. Zach Werenski, CBJ\\ (-4)
21. Ryan Suter, MIN (SAME)
22. Ryan Ellis, NSH (SAME)
23. Jake Gardiner, TOR* (SAME)
24. Shayne Gostisbehere, PHI (+1)
25. Ivan Provorov, PHI\\ (+1)
26. Jeff Petry, MTL (+2)
27. Rasmus Ristolainen, BUF (-3)
28. Oscar Klefbom, EDM (+12)
29. Miro Heiskanen, DAL (NEW)
30. Erik Johnson, COL (-2)
31. Justin Faulk, CAR (-1)
32. Mattias Ekholm, NSH (+7)
33. Alex Pietrangelo, STL (+1)
34. Josh Manson, ANA (+1)
35. Aaron Ekblad, FLA (-4)
36. Shea Theodore, VGK (+6)
37. Neal Pionk, NYR\\ (NEW)
38. Rasmus Dahlin, BUF (-5)
39. Duncan Keith, CHI (-5)
40. Henri Jokiharju, CHI (-3)
41. Will Butcher, NJD\\ (SAME)
42. Vince Dunn, STL (-4)
43. Mikhail Sergachev, TBL (-4)
44. Jared Spurgeon, MIN (SAME)
45. Esa Lindell, DAL\\ (NEW)
46. Brent Seabrook, CHI (SAME)
47. Mike Green, DET (SAME)
48. Cam Fowler, ANA (NEW)
49. Ryan McDonagh, TBL (SAME)
50. Samuel Girard, COL (NEW)
Dropped out:John Klingberg (INJ.); Nick Leddy, NYI; Ryan Pulock, NYI; Jacob Trouba, WPG\\; Jamie Oleksiak, PIT; Colton Parayko, STL
Just missed: Matt Niskanen, WSH; Maxime Lajoie, OTT; Derrick Pouliot, VAN; Markus Nutivaara, CBJ; Alex Goligoski, ARI (DTD); Matt Grzelcyk, BOS
Key injuries: Charlie McAvoy, BOS; Alexander Edler, VAN; Shea Weber, MTL; Justin Schultz, PIT

READ: Last week's Top 50 defenseman rankings

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