Pardon me as I break out the book of clichés, but I've always believed in defense winning championships.
It didn't dawn on me that this statement also carried over into the Fantasy Hockey world until I was always scuffling to find defensemen on the waiver wire to keep up with the competition.
Last season, only 12 defensemen totaled 200 or more Fantasy points with Flames defenseman Dion Phaneuf edging out eventual Norris Trophy honoree Nicklas Lidstrom, 292.5 to 290.0 points, for the top points holder.
The number was much higher for forwards as 38 players managed 200 or more Fantasy points last season.
In our CBSSports.com Experts League last season, Fantasy writer Sergio Gonzalez walked away with the title and did so on the heels of strong play from his defensemen. He had two of the top five Fantasy defensemen -- Sergei Gonchar and Brian Rafalski -- and even the 13th best option in Ed Jovanovski. The runner-up was Senior Fantasy writer Eric Mack, who he had five of the top 30 Fantasy defenseman.
Leaders of the Pack
We've already touched on the likes of Phaneuf, Lidstrom, Gonchar, Rafalski and Jovanovski. These are the guys that not only play well on defense, but know how to move the puck, can find the back of the net and aren't afraid to throw their weight around. They can pretty much help Fantasy owners in any format.
Aside from the above mentioned names, you are also looking at Dan Boyle, Mike Green, Bryan McCabe, Andrei Markov, newly-acquired Oilers' blue-liner Lubomir Visnovsky, Chris Pronger and Scott Niedermayer in Anaheim, Sergei Zubov and Zdeno Chara as other elite Fantasy defensemen.
Golden Goal
Most of the scoring in hockey is done by the forwards. Simply logic tells us that. They are the guys that play closest to the net. Therefore, finding those blue liners that can light the lamp are extremely important since most Fantasy leagues reward extra for goals scored by defensemen.
Dustin Byfuglien, Dennis Wideman, Michal Rozsival, Rob Blake, Mattias Ohlund, Brent Burns, Marc-Andre Bergeron, Shea Weber, Tom Gilbert, Sheldon Souray, Philippe Boucher, Jay Bouwmeester and John-Michael Liles are defensemen that have a knack for scoring.
Helping Hand
Goal scoring is not everyone's cup of tea. There are some players that are highly-skilled in passing the puck and putting it on the scorer's stick. Defensemen that can find the open player are just as valuable in the NHL as the guys making goalies work extra hard to keep the puck out of the net.
If you find yourself looking for a defenseman that racks up assists take a gander at Chicago's Brian Campbell and Duncan Keith, Islanders' new power-play guru Mark Streit, Tomas Kaberle, Joe Corvo, Joni Pitkanen, Marek Zidlicky, Erik Johnson, Tobias Enstrom, Braydon Coburn, Wade Redden, Jaroslav Spacek, Andrej Meszaros and Tom Poti.
Plus/Minus Specialists
Keeping the opposition off the scoreboard is what defense is all about. Surely, every NHL team would love to have gifted two-way players up-and-down their blue line, but that just doesn't happen.
There are some guys who play exceptionally strong at even strength and manage to keep favorable plus/minus ratings. The players that help Fantasy owners stay on the plus-side are guys like Anton Volchenkov, Christoph Schubert and Chris Phillips in Ottawa, Niklas Kronwall, Matt Niskanen, Kent Huskins, Robyn Regehr, Douglas Murray, Henrik Tallinder and Johnny Oduya.
Penalty Killers
A new trend developing in Fantasy is leagues rewarding points for penalty killers. It has been a part of the NHL game for years and now it's finally infiltrating the Fantasy game.
If you happen to be in a league where it's good to have a defenseman that logs a ton of shorthanded minutes, then Hal Gill (Penguins), Francois Beauchemin and Sean O'Donnell (Ducks), Adam Foote (Avalanche), Greg Zanon and Dan Hamhuis (Predators), Willie Mitchell (Canucks), Jan Hejda (Blue Jackets), Radek Martinek (Islanders), Ryan Johnson (Blues), Niclas Havelid (Atlanta) and Toni Lydman (Sabres) should be on your draft board.
Headhunters
Hockey is about the only Fantasy sport that actually rewards or penalizes for a foul. Some players' sole purpose on the ice is to act as a headhunter. Most of these players are forwards since a team usually carries 12-plus on a given night, but there are some defensemen that have an irritating flair for creating trouble.
Tampa Bay's Shane O'Brien, the Brendan Witt, Cory Sarich, Jim Vandermeer, Nick Boynton, Ole-Kristian Tollefsen, Mike Commodore, Barrett Jackman, Mike Komisarek, Steve Staios and John Erskine all spend a fair amount of time in the penalty box.
Rookie Watch
There is always a new wave of fresh faces in the NHL, and while the Calder Trophy usually ends up in a forward's hands, rookie defensemen also make an impact on the hockey world -- both real and Fantasy.
A few rookie blue liners to keep an eye on heading into training camp are Drew Doughty and Thomas Hickey (Los Angeles), Karl Alzner (Washington), Cody Franson (Nashville), Zach Bogosian (Atlanta) and Luke Schenn (Toronto).
There are all kinds of defenseman for all walks of Fantasy leagues. Finding the right blue liner can make that much of a difference in helping separate yourself from the rest of the teams.
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