The DF (Defense) rating is desrcibed in the CBA as "Player's ability to back check and play defense". This article will look at each team's top DF players. Before we begin with that, let's look at the top 10 forwards and defensemen:
Top 10 defensive forwards according to 2023-2024 DF ratings
Bergeron - 84 - Flyers
Gallagher - 83 - Avalanche
Okposo - 83 - Lightning
Zibanejad - 83 - Kings
O'Rielly - 83 - Rangers
Copp - 82 - Coyotes
Wheeler - 82 - Canadiens
Brown - 82 - Canadiens
M. Foligno - 82 - UFA
Mark Stone - 82 - Panthers
(Nic Dowd at 11th completes the 82 DF)
Top 10 defensive defensemen according to 2023-2024 DF ratings
Giordano - 86 - UFA
Tanev - 83 - Oilers
DeHaan - 82 - Predators
Weegar - 82 - Maple Leafs
Ekholm - 82 - Penguins
Brodie - 82 - Sharks
Larsson - 81 - Rangers
Pelech - 81 Hurricans
Edler - 81 - Predators
Chiarot - 81 - Kings
(Lindholm, Provorov, Petry, Mayfield, Poolman, Werenski complete the list of 81 DF)
Using the definition above, I took a look at each team's roster as of September 16 and tallied up the highest DF players to see which teams on paper have the best team defense overall. 80 DF is the minimum for this ranking.
UFA
Marcus Foligno - 82
Mark Giordano - 86
Notes: Giordano's 86 is the best for all defensemen. The rating is hard to understand. Foligno is a top 10 rated defensive forward.
Anaheim - 5 total
Chris Kreider - 81
Tucker Poolman - 81
Tyler Myers - 80
Jonas Brodin - 80
Austin Czarnik - 80
10 between 75-79 DF, including 4 at 78+
Notes: Most of their 'core' players are some of their lowest rated DF guys but still have a ton of DF in the lineup.
Arizona - 4 total
Andrew Copp - 82
Lukas Sedlak - 81
Sam Reinhart - 80
Justin Braun - 80
14 more between 75-79 DF, including 9 at 78+
Notes: Everybody except Tarasenko is 75+. Elite defensive team inlcluding 1 top 10 rated forward.
Boston - 2 total
Cam Atkinson - 80
Mark Sheifele - 80
15 more between 75-79 DF, including 5 at 78+
Notes: 15 between 75-79. Will this impact their goal of losing games?
Buffalo - 2 total
Joel Eriksson Ek - 81
Ethan Bear - 80
12 more between 75-79DF, including 5 at 78+
Calgary - 2 total
Zach Werenski - 81
Brad Marchand - 80
10 more between 75-79 DF, including 4 at 78+
Carolina - 4 total
Nic Dowd - 82
Adam Pelech - 81
Radek Faksa- 81
Jacob Trouba - 80
13 more between 75-79, including 4 at 78+
Notes: Top 11 rated forward Dowd highlights this solid defensive team in the east.
Chicago - 4 total
Hampus Lindholm- 81
Teuvo Teravainen -81
Sebastian Aho - 80
Teddy Blueger - 80
12 more between 75-79, including 6 at 78+
Colorado - 2 total
Brendan Gallagher - 83
Ivan Provorov - 81
15 between 75-79, including 6 at 78+
Notes: Gallagher's 83 DF has him top 5 for forwards. We all know that is complete bullshit.
Columbus - 2 total
Luke Glendening - 80
Garnet Hathaway - 80
14 more between 75-79, including 4 at 78+
Notes: With recent moves focusing on acquiring youth, can Columbus retool and make the playoffs?
Dallas - 4 total
Mitch Marner - 81
Leon Draisaitl - 80
Charlie McAvoy - 80
Darnell Nurse - 80
9 more between 75-79, including 3 at 78+
Detroit - 2 total
Scott Mayfield - 81
Alexandre Carrier - 80
9 more between 75-79, including 4 at 78+
Edmonton - 2 total
Chris Tanev - 83
Derek Ryan - 80
15 more between 75-79, including 6 at 78+
Notes: Edmonton seems to always find a way to make the playoffs and their roster is better on paper now over last year. Tanev is the 2nd best DF defenseman and leads this solid defensive team.
Florida - 1 total
Mark Stone - 82
14 more between 75-79, including 2 at 78+
Notes: Mark Stone is a top 10 DF forward. Will shoulder the load in Florida this year.
Los Angeles - 7 total
Mika Zibanejad - 83
Jeff Petry - 81
Nico Hischier - 81
Ben Chiarot - 81
Connor Murphy - 80
Connor McDavid - 80
Brandon Tanev - 80
10 more between 75-79, including 4 at 78+
Notes: Elite defensive team led by a top 5 defensive forward in Zibanejad and top 10 DF defenseman in Chiarot. Petry is in the top 15 DF Dmen list as well.
Minnesota - 7 total
JG Pageau - 81
Travis Dermott - 80
Jake Evans - 80
Roope Hintz - 80
Elias Pettersson - 80
Josh Morrissey - 80
Josh Archibald - 80
12 more between 75-79, including 5 at 78+
Notes: Elite defensive team. Nothing in the top 10 like LA, however DF spread throughout the lineup.
Montreal - 5 total
Blake Wheeler - 82
Connor Brown - 82
Artturi Lehkonen - 80
JT Miller - 80
Cal Clutterbuck - 80
10 more between 75-79, including 2 at 78+
Notes: Sneaky good DF group in the east. Brown and Wheeler's rating are top 10 for forwards even though Brown's 82 is nonsense.
Nashville - 6 total
Calvin DeHaan - 81
Alex Edler - 81
Anthony Cirelli - 81
Adam Lowry - 81
Vladislav Namesnikov - 81
Damon Severson - 80
8 more between 75-79, including 3 at 78+
Notes: Hard to say which direction Nashville is going for. They want to rebuild but the team is pretty good defensively on paper.
New Jersey - 1 total
Nicolas Aube- Kubel - 81
15 more between 75-79, including 10 at 78+
New York Islanders - 2 total
Nick Backstrom - 80
Tyler Toffoli - 80
7 more between 75-79, including 3 at 78+
New York Rangers - 4 total
Ryan O'Rielly - 83
Adam Larsson - 81
Jesper Fast - 81
Zemgus Girgensons - 81
10 more between 75-79, including 6 at 78+
Notes: 2 top 10 DF in each category, O'Rielly (F) and Larsson (D). Similar to Boston, will this impact their goal of losing games?
Ottawa - 2 total
Mikael Backlund - 80
William Karlsson - 80
11 more between 75-79, including 7 at 78+
Notes: Major additions this offseason. Will NEFHL Ottawa climb out of the basement faster than NHL Ottawa?
Philadelphia - 5 total
Patrice Bergeron - 84
Adam Fox - 80
Bo Horvat - 80
Tyler Pitlick - 80
Travis Hamonic - 80
13 more between 75-79, including 5 at 78+
Notes: Bergeron is the league's top defensive forward at 84. Elite defensive team.
Pittsburgh - 2 total
Mattias Ekolm - 82
Noel Acciari - 80
12 more between 75-79, including 7 at 78+
Notes: Ekholm is rated top 5 for D.
San Jose - 2 total
TJ Brodie - 82
Jujhar Khaira- 80
15 more between 75-79, including 8 at 78+
Notes: Brodie is rated just outside the top 5 for D.
Seattle - 3 total
Jake McCabe - 80
Jordan Martinook - 80
Anthony Mantha - 80
6 more between 75-79, including 2 at 78+
St. Louis - 3 total
Jonathan Toews - 80
Tyson Jost - 80
Tanner Pearson - 80
10 more between 75-79, including 4 at 78+
Tampa Bay - 3 total
Kyle Okposo - 83
Drew Doughty - 80
Philip Danault - 80
15 more between 75-79, including 7 at 78+
Notes: Led by top 5 defensive forward Okposo, Tampa Bay is a very solid defensive team on paper.
Toronto - 3 total
Mackenzie Weegar - 82
Anze Kopitar - 81
Josh Leivo - 80
8 more between 75-79, including 4 at 78+
Vancouver - 3 total
Aleksander Barkov - 80
Eric Robinson - 80
Matthew Tkachuk - 80
15 more between 75-79, including 10 at 78+
Notes: Like Minnesota, nothing in the top 10 but good DF sprinkled throughout the lineup evenly.
Vegas - 0 total
13 between 75-79 DF, including 5 at 78+
Notes: Only team without any 80+ DF.
Washington - 4 total
Jordan Staal - 81
Derek Stepan - 80
Auston Matthews - 80
Josh Manson - 80
10 more between 75-79, including 6 at 78+
Winnipeg - 3 total
Nick Paul - 81
Elias Lindholm - 81
Radko Gudas - 80
12 more between 75-79, including 6 at 78+
So there you have it. In terms of which teams have the most, the top 5 (+1) are:
Los Angeles + Minnesota = 7 each
Nashville = 6
Anaheim + Philadelphia + Montreal = 5 each
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Elmer Ferguson Dynasty Year I Article 10/5
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