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Most underused defenseman in the NHL? |
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In this edition of the hotstove, we share our thoughts on the most underused defenders in the NHL.
Todd Cordell
Travis Sanheim of the Philadelphia Flyers.
At 5v5, he leads their defense in points per 60, Corsi For%, Expected Goals For%, and is tied for 1st with a +4 goal differential. Despite this, he is seeing just 14:44 per game at 5v5 and 16:16 overall.
Some will suggest he benefits from sheltered minutes. That is true – he doesn't spend much time against opposing team's top players. My counter to that: Sanheim doesn't get the luxury of playing with top players on the Flyers either. His primary partner is Radko Gudas. He has shared the ice more with guys like Scott Laughton and Dale Weise than Claude Giroux and Sean Couturier. It's not like putting up great numbers is a walk in the park.
Sanheim is a plus skater who can move the puck and he has the size and strength to handle himself around the net. Given how well he's performed, and that Philadelphia's team defense isn't exactly stout, I think it's fair to say he should be playing more.
Honorable mention goes to Will Butcher. A lot of what I said about Sanheim applies to Butcher and the situation he's in with the Devils.
James Tanner
One of the most underused defensemen in the NHL is the Toronto Maple Leafs Travis Dermott. He has a 55% CF and is the only Leafs regular defenseman who allows less than 30 shots against per 60 minutes. For reasons known only to coach Mike Babcock, he is fifth on the Leafs in time on ice per game. He plays less than Ron Hainsey, and yet he is clearly on his way to being a very effective top pairing NHL defenseman. He probably doesn't have the offensive upside to be a #1, but he should be an above average #2 or a very good #3 when he finally tops out. The Leafs should definitely be playing him more.
Peter Tessier
I'm going to go off the board here with Joakim Ryan from San Jose. He played 62 games last year for the Sharks and so far only 25 this year being a healthy scratch from Dec 2nd on. He's played 294 minutes of 5vs5 time so far this season and is basically in positive territory in all underlying numbers - so what gives?
Well he plays with Brent Burns and that's a big positive but he's not there as a sidekick. Even without Burns he had positive over even numbers on possession. On San Jose he might be underused simply because of the riches they have on defense but there's probably some underlying skill there that's worth seeing as on more than a few teams he could be s solid middle pairing guy and not being a healthy scratch.
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