Week 8: 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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TRENDING UP

Drew Doughty, LAK: The Los Angeles Kings defenseman has four points (one goal, three assists) in his past four games. Doughty's providing category coverage with 11 shots on goal, nine hits and a plus-5 over the span. The Kings are 2-2-0 in their past four games and, with goalie Jonathan Quick (lower body) close to returning, Doughty is an under-the-radar trade target in season-long formats.
Matt Dumba, MIN:The Minnesota Wild defenseman is on a six-game point streak totaling nine points (five goals, four assists) and 28 SOG. Dumba has asserted himself as the Wild's No. 1 fantasy defenseman option over Ryan Suter and has joined NHL.com's top 10 rankings at the position. Dumba has added value in leagues that count hits; he ranks 28th (45 in 23 games) at the position entering Tuesday.
Colin Miller, VGK:The Vegas Golden Knights defenseman has emerged as a quality streaming option in all formats with 10 points (two goals, eight assists), including five on the power play, in the past 10 games. Miller has 10 SOG, 17 hits and is plus-6 over the span. If Miller's success on the first power-play unit with forwards Jonathan Marchessault, Max Pacioretty, Alex Tuch and Reilly Smith continues, he could potentially overtake Shea Theodore as the top fantasy defenseman option for the Golden Knights.
Ryan McDonagh, TBL:Even with Victor Hedman back in the lineup, McDonagh is making the case to remain on fantasy rosters with five points (one goal, four assists) and a plus-7 in his past four games. While McDonagh is not a high-end trade target, he may be able to replicate the production that Mikhail Sergachev had last season (40 points in 79 games). McDonagh is worth holding onto for exposure to Tampa Bay's deep forward group. UPDATE: McDonagh (undisclosed) left the game Thursday.

INJURY UPDATES

Shea Weber, MTL:The Montreal Canadiens defenseman is expected to return against the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday after missing the first 24 games with a knee injury. Weber will likely have an immediate fantasy impact with exposure to forwards Max Domi, Jonathan Drouin, Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Brendan Gallagher on the top power-play unit. Defenseman Jeff Petry (17 points in 24 games) will remain in NHL.com's rankings this week, but fantasy owners may want to turn elsewhere moving forward.
Alexander Edler, VAN:The Vancouver Canucks defenseman returned against the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday. Edler (21 percent owned) was held without a point but recaptured his spot on the top power play with forwards Elias Pettersson and Bo Horvat. Right wing Brock Boeser is expected to return Tuesday, giving Edler another valuable forward to potentially benefit from. He's worth adding in standard leagues as a fourth or fifth defenseman with high upside if he can stay healthy.

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 (SAME)
3. Victor Hedman, TBL (+1)
4. Morgan Rielly, TOR (-1)
5. Erik Karlsson, SJS\ (SAME)
6. Dustin Byfuglien, WPG (DTD)
7. Roman Josi, NSH (+1)
8. Kris Letang, PIT (+1)
9. Seth Jones, CBJ (-2)
10. Matt Dumba, MIN (+4)
11. Thomas Chabot, OTT (+1)
12. Tyson Barrie, COL (DTD)
13. Mark Giordano, CGY (SAME)
14. Torey Krug, BOS (+1)
15. P.K. Subban, NSH (DTD)
16. Keith Yandle, FLA (SAME)
17. Drew Doughty, LAK (+6)
18. Rasmus Ristolainen, BUF (SAME)
19. Ryan Ellis, NSH (+3)
20. Ryan Suter, MIN (+4)
21. Shea Weber, MTL (+4)
22. Zach Werenski, CBJ\\ (-2)
23. Shayne Gostisbehere, PHI (-3)
24. Oliver Ekman-Larsson, ARI (-7)
25. Rasmus Dahlin, BUF (+4)
26. Charlie McAvoy, BOS\\ (DTD)
27. Dougie Hamilton, CAR (-6)
28. Neal Pionk, NYR\\ (SAME)
29. Miro Heiskanen, DAL (+2)
30. Alex Pietrangelo, STL (INJ.)
31. Jake Gardiner, TOR* (-5)
32. Oscar Klefbom, EDM (+1)
33. Mattias Ekholm, NSH (+1)
34. Aaron Ekblad, FLA (+1)
35. Mike Green, DET (+1)
36. Ivan Provorov, PHI\\ (-7)
37. Shea Theodore, VGK (+2)
38. Ryan McDonagh, TBL (DTD)
39. Colin Miller, VGK (+10)
40. Brandon Montour, ANA (+9)
41. Erik Johnson, COL (-4)
42. Justin Faulk, CAR (-4)
43. Alexander Edler, VAN* (NEW - INJ.)
44. Will Butcher, NJD\\ (-3)
45. Jared Spurgeon, MIN (-3)
46. Samuel Girard, COL (-3)
47. Jeff Petry, MTL (-3)
48. Esa Lindell, DAL\\ (NEW)
49. Noah Hanifin, CGY (NEW)
50. Sami Vatanen, NJD (NEW)
Just missed: Michal Kempny, WSH; T.J. Brodie, CGY; Igor Ozhiganov, TOR; Ryan Murray, CBJ; Danny DeKeyser, DET
Dropped out: Brent Seabrook, CHI; Henri Jokiharju, CHI; Damon Severson, NJD; Josh Manson, ANA
Key injuries: John Klingberg, DAL; Justin Schultz, PIT; Cam Fowler, ANA
READ: Last week's Top 50 defenseman rankings
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