Fantasy Hockey: Ranking the best NHL defensemen for 2015-16

Dobber Hockey launched in 2005 and Dobber and his staff have hitched their wagons to Puck Daddy to preach fantasy hockey to the Yahoo! masses since 2009.

As it is in real hockey, fantasy roto hockey starts from the net out.

After the truly elite forwards are gone, I make sure my defense corps are solid. And I'll never leave the draft without being 100 percent comfortable with my goaltending (three good ones at least). Why? Because it's damned near impossible to get goalies and defensemen off the waiver wire. Especially later in the season. Forwards are a dime a dozen, once you get past the elite.

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You can stream forwards who are on a hot streak in and out of your lineup via the wire all season long. But with D and G that's tough to do.

Studs

These guys are money in the bank. In fact, your fifth and sixth defensemen combined may not do what each of these studs will do statistically.

Erik Karlsson, Ottawa Senators - Probably the only blueliner capable of getting 80 points right now. Considered giving him his own category here, but what's the level above "stud"?

PK Subban, Montreal Canadiens - He's missed seven games in four years, has at least 10 goals in each of the last three, is a consistent PIM guy and was plus-21 last year. The total package.

Dustin Byfuglien, Winnipeg Jets - Byfuglien's point total slipped last year but his points-per-game average (0.65) was right around where it always is and his PIM total soared back upwards to career highs (124). Your best bet for 50 points, 100 PIM among defensemen.

Stars

When the run on defensemen truly begins in your draft, you have to make sure you get one or two of these guys.

Kevin Shattenkirk, St. Louis Blues - Abdominal surgery ruined what was a breakout campaign for Shatty. At the time he was in a battle for top scorer among defensemen. If he stays healthy this time, it wouldn't be shocking to see him up there with Mr. Karlsson.

Mark Giordano, Calgary Flames - The guy Shattenkirk was battling with for top D scorer. And Giordano's impressive run was also cut short by an injury. That's two consecutive seasons and three of the last four in which Gio has missed at least 18 games.

Keith Yandle, New York Rangers - He may have been a minus-26 last year, but minus-32 was with Arizona (so plus-6 with New York, Mr. Math Wizard). He had 21 points in his last 31 regular season and playoff games, putting his slow start upon arriving in New York behind him.

Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay Lightning - Still only 24, Hedman is on the cusp. The problem is, he'd give Giordano a run for his money when it comes to injuries. He's missed 55 games over the last four seasons - or about 14 each year.

Roman Josi, Nashville Predators - Josi outplayed and out-produced his more touted teammate Shea Weber in every way, except for fantasy. He doesn't put up the PIM and shot totals that his partner does.

Shea Weber, Nashville Predators - Speak of the devil. The emergence of Josi has seemed to make Weber a much more aggressive player. He's shooting more and going to the Sin Bin a lot more too.

Duncan Keith, Chicago Blackhawks - His fantasy value may be a little inflated, what with all the Cups and such. Keith is a 60-plus point player every few years. More often than not he's good for 45.

John Carlson, Washington Capitals - Star on the rise finally had his big breakout campaign, posting 55 points and a plus-11 rating. At No. 67, he's the Yahoo's 13th highest ranked defenseman. And deservedly so.

Drew Doughty, Los Angeles Kings - Possibly the best all-around D in the league. In real hockey. In fantasy, much like Keith, he's very good…but not great.

Alex Pietrangelo, St. Louis Blues - Pietrangelo is Doughty's age and was drafted two picks after him (in 2008). And it's looking as though his "real" value far exceeds his "fantasy" value. Just like Doughty.

Brent Burns, San Jose Sharks - Last year's second leading scorer (tied) among defensemen, Burns set a career high. He did what he could never do as a forward - he tallied 60 points.

Boom-or-Bust

Whether it's due to frequent injuries, or season-over-season inconsistencies, with these guys you could probably get later in the draft…but the risk is most definitely there. Could make or break your season, in some cases.

Kris Letang, Pittsburgh Penguins - I love Letang. I think he's a great player. But as a fantasy owner, I can't take anymore. I'm like the poor dog that keeps getting kicked but keeps coming back, scared and timid. Can you just give us 70 games. Please?

Mike Green, Detroit Red Wings - When a defenseman scores 30 goals and 70 points (twice!), he can ride that wave in fantasy hockey for years to come. That's why we're still so hopeful. That's why we'll still draft him high even though he hasn't had a 50-point season since 2010.

Ryan McDonagh, New York Rangers - McDonagh shocked us by having a 43-point season in 2013-14. He had us convinced that he wasn't just a stay-at-home guy, but can be counted on for big points too. Then he managed just 33 points last year. So now we just don't know anymore…

Youngsters on the Rise

These guys are well on their way to becoming perennial top defensemen in fantasy hockey, all they need to do is prove to us they can do it year after year.

Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Arizona Coyotes - Is probably ranked a tad high at 14 among defenseman, but certainly not due to talent. Because of the team around him, it's quite probable that OEL will post a third consecutive 43- or 44-point season.

Tyson Barrie, Colorado Avalanche - The 24-year-old led the Avs in scoring at times throughout the season and finished six points back of Gabriel Landeskog. His potential is through the roof if you think about it. If he can get 53 points when the top scorer on his team gets 59…how many can he get if Nathan MacKinnon and Matt Duchene show up to play?

Justin Faulk, Carolina Hurricanes - Faulk is a fantastic young (23) defenseman. But just as it was with Ryan McDonagh in 2013-14, I question the offensive upside. I'd be cautious about a repeat of his 49-point year.

Aaron Ekblad, Florida Panthers - Of course the defending Calder Trophy winner belongs here. But his point totals from last season don't justify his rather high Yahoo ranking (90th). One man's opinion, but I don't think his point totals will increase too much over last year. That's not to say that he won't be a stud in due time though.

Sami Vatanen, Anaheim Ducks - There's no shortage of young, rising talent on Anaheim's back end, from Hampus Lindholm to Cam Fowler to Shea Theodore. But Vatanen has the highest offensive upside and that's reflected in the Yahoo rankings. He's the highest ranked of the four.

Dougie Hamilton, Calgary Flames - The move to Calgary is a step up for Hamilton in terms of potential offense. I'm sure he'd rather pass the puck to Johnny Gaudreau and Jiri Hudler as opposed to Patrice Bergeron and Loui Eriksson.

Torey Krug, Boston Bruins - With Hamilton gone and Zdeno Chara trending downward, the PP QB baton will be passed to Krug.

John Klingberg, Dallas Stars - I can't decide if I'd pick Klingberg or Trouba as the "player in this section destined to move up to the Studs section". Klingberg is awesome, and I'm certain he'll build on last year's 40 points rather than hitting a sophomore slump. Just may be the best value in the entire Yahoo rankings at 184.

Nick Leddy, New York Islanders - Leddy joined the Islanders at the perfect time, as this up-and-coming team finally broke through last season. His 37 points tied a career high and there's still plenty of room to grow.

Jacob Trouba, Winnipeg Jets - I'm a huge fan of Trouba and I think he'll be a star. But he's probably going to go the route of John Carlson (six years before breakout) as opposed to Drew Doughty (two years before breakout).

Don't Overrate

Here are some defensemen you shouldn't put as much stock in as other GMs in your league will.

Niklas Kronwall, Detroit Red Wings - The power play used to be his domain. But with Green on the scene, Kronwall could be off the first unit.

TJ Brodie, Calgary Flames - The acquisition of Hamilton pretty much eliminates Brodie from the man advantage. He had nine power-play points last season.

Brent Seabrook, Chicago Blackhawks - You gotta love how he hardly misses games. You gotta love how he once had 48 points. You gotta love the Cup rings on his fingers. But the reality is, too often he's closer to a 30-point player than a 40-point player.

Olli Maatta, Pittsburgh Penguins - Maatta showed promise offensively when he was a rookie. But last year's injury struggles have allowed Derrick Pouliot to get a foothold. And now Letang is back, too.

Dan Boyle, New York Rangers - He's 19 points shy of 600 in his career…and I question whether or not he'll make it. So that's where I’m at with this guy.

Sleepers

Since the "Sleeper Picks" article was dominated by forwards (only two defensemen listed - Matt Dumba and Justin Schultz), I've come up with a few more names for you to draft and get a nice, unexpected return.

Andrej Sekera, Edmonton Oilers - Sekera showed glimpses of offensive prowess in Buffalo, particularly during the last two dozen games of the 2010-11 season. And when he first arrived in Carolina he tallied 44 points that year. But he only puts up the points when the team leans on him to do so, otherwise he's a stay-at-homer. The Oilers are a team that could use him in more of a puck-moving role. Or at the very least, as a safety net for Schultz. I think 35-40 points is very much doable.

Matt Niskanen, Washington Capitals - When Green was out of the lineup with an upper-body injury, Niskanen posted five points in seven games (three PP points). And in the game that Green left, Niskanen also had a PP point. So six points in 7.5 games with four of them on the power play. I just really like his outlook here.

Anton Stralman, Tampa Bay Lightning - Hedman has become an offensive force and he's still getting better. Stralman is his defense partner, so the supplemental points will pile up as they did last year when he set a career high with 39.

Derrick Pouliot, Pittsburgh Penguins - Not rookie-eligible because he played 34 games last season, Pouliot is said to have so much offensive talent that he rivals or even exceeds teammate Kris Letang. He's still only 21 though, so he'll need time to put it all together.

Michael Del Zotto, Philadelphia Flyers - MDZ put his dating hockey struggles behind him and secured his spot in the lineup with that nice contract. He had 23 points in his last 35 games.

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