Ranking the NHL’s top 10 defensemen
Ranking the NHL’s top 10 defensemen: The backbone of any NHL team is its defense. They’re the last line of defense before the league’s best shooters go off against the netminder on their own.
To be effective on defense, players must be physical and work to reduce the number of scoring opportunities for the other team. However, they have been viewed as power-play quarterbacks and potentially lethal scores.
As a result, there is a greater demand than ever before for offensive contributions from NHL defensemen. A total of eight defensemen in the NHL scored 60 or more points in 2021-22.
Defensemen play a crucial role in hockey. Thus, I ranked the best blueliners in the league from best to worst. They considered their career output, where their careers are at, and how well they may perform in the future:
10. Moritz Seider, Red Wings
Seider has accomplished so much in his first season with the Red Wings that it seems silly not to rank him among the league’s best defensemen already. Winning the Calder Trophy as the league’s best rookie affirmed his status as a valuable contributor on both ends of the game.
He’s only 21, but he’s already a muscular presence, and he’s laid his share of monster hits in his debut season. Seider’s puck-handling skills make it possible for him to make the amazing passes we saw so often last year. Seider has unlimited potential.
9. Miro Heiskanen, Stars
Heiskanen has matured into a top-tier defenseman, despite his lack of showmanship at times. Three times in his first four seasons as a player, he scored more than 30 points, with 36 coming in his best season.
Heiskanen had 26 points (6 goals, 20 assists) during the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs, which was the most points ever scored by a defenseman in a single playoff by any position in the National Hockey League. He’s hardly the kind of defenseman who’ll put up 20 goals in a season, but he’s brilliant nonetheless.
It’s not just that he has deadly accuracy with the puck when he gets a look at goal; his vision in the attacking zone is among the greatest of anyone in the league. Heiskanen is a rock-solid defenseman.
8. John Carlson, Capitals
Carlson is a rare breed of defenseman who can also contribute offensively. After all, he has scored at least 70 points in three of the past four years.
During the 2021-22 season, the Washington Capitals defenseman scored a career-high 17 goals, seven of which were scored when his team was on the man advantage.
Carlson is also an excellent passer who regularly sets up high-percentage scoring chances for players like Alex Ovechkin and Evgeny Kuznetsov. The 32-year-old keeps bringing stability to the offense, particularly with the extra man.
7. Aaron Ekblad, Panthers
Once the 2021-22 regular season ended and the Panthers were declared Presidents’ Trophy winners, they became the talk of the league.
One of the main factors was the steady play of veteran defenseman Aaron Ekblad. Ekblad had a career-high 57 points while appearing in just 61 games.
The 26-year-old scored 41 points in 67 games this past season, which was his career high. Never having trouble finding the back of the net, he has scored double-digit goals in seven of his eight professional seasons.
Ekblad witnessed a significant increase in the number of assists he recorded (42). Among the league’s best defenders, Ekblad now ranks among the very best.
6. Kris Letang, Penguins
It’s almost unforgivable that Letang, a surefire Hall of Famer, isn’t in the top five.
That, however, merely attests to the already high caliber of the incumbents.
Letang scored 68 points, dished out 58 assists, and had 158 hits last season, demonstrating that he still has plenty of steam left in the tank (171). During those four years, he also placed in the top 10 of Norris Trophy balloting three times.
In fact, Letang is a true workhorse, as he spent 25:47 minutes every night on the ice last season. Letang is headed to Toronto near the end of his career, but he still has a good shot at playing at an All-Star level for a while more.
5. Charlie McAvoy, Bruins
McAvoy has quickly risen through the ranks to become a top-tier defender in the NHL despite only playing there for the past five years.
The Bruins defenseman’s breakthrough season came in 2021-22, when he scored 56 points (10 goals and 46 assists). It was the first time in his career that McAvoy scored more than 10 goals in a season.
When there are a lot of players in front of the goal, McAvoy’s exquisite sniper shot usually finds the back of the net. The 24-year-willingness old’s to lay a huge hit in open ice is a plus, too. After a breakout season, McAvoy has established himself as one of the NHL’s best defensemen. It will be fascinating to watch how far he can go.
4. Adam Fox, Rangers
Fox won the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s best defenseman in just his second season after an outstanding 2020-21 campaign.
That was remarkable, but the Rangers defenseman outdid himself in 2021-22. With 63 helpers, he was third among defensemen, trailing only Roman Josi of the Predators and Victor Hedman of the Lightning.
Fox has proven himself to be an exceptional puck handler in the offensive zone, which is a major reason why he is regarded as one of the best playmakers at his position. Fox winning more Norris Trophies before his career is over is highly likely.
3. Roman Josi, Predators
Josi has been one of the best defensemen in the league since he first debuted. His 2021–22 campaign was truly one for the record books.
The Predators defenseman set a career-high with 96 points (23 goals and 73 assists) in 80 games played and led the league with 11 power-play tallies.
His eleven man-advantage goals were more than Cale Makar and John Carlson combined. His 73 assists last year topped the NHL, so his vision on the ice was clearly off the charts. In addition, his 26 power-play assists placed him fourth among defensemen.
The 32-year-old Josi still has enough of elite hockey left in the tank and deserves to be ranked among the league’s best defensemen.
2. Victor Hedman, Lightning
When I ranked the best three defensemen in the NHL, Josi and Hedman tied for first. The Lightning defenseman has the upper hand, though, because his list of accomplishments is practically limitless.
He has won four Stanley Cups, been named to four All-Star teams, and been named the Norris Trophy and Conn Smythe Trophy winners.
Hedman is a big specimen of a defenseman, standing 6’6 and weighing 240 pounds, so he has no trouble imposing his will. In addition to having a cannon of a shot from the point, his toughness allows him to excel at either end of the rink.
Hedman scored 20 goals in the 2021-22 season, which was a career-high and the eighth time in the last nine years that he has scored double digits. When Hedman finally hangs up his skates, he will be remembered as one of the greatest defensemen in NHL history.
1. Cale Makar, Avalanche
Do you have company, or did you expect someone else? Even though he has only played three full seasons in the NHL, Makar has already established himself as one of the best defensemen in the league.
Although Josi and Hedman were also in the running for the Norris Trophy this season, the Avalanche defenseman came out on top. This was a career year for the 23-year-old great, who led the Avalanche to the Stanley Cup and finished with 29 points (eight goals and 21 assists).
Thanks to his offensive prowess, Makar has been compared to Bruins legend Bobby Orr, which is high praise indeed. Makar’s overtime winner against the Blackhawks last year should prove his talent further.
When defending against Makar, his opponents will appear like fools since he can stop on a dime. If Makar maintains the same level of play he has shown during his first three NHL seasons, he has a legitimate shot at posting 100-point seasons in the future. As of the right moment, I rank him as the best active defender.
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