Why Shattenkirk playing for the Rangers is good for fantasy

A big reason why Kevin Shattenkirk chose the New York Rangers was the opportunity to play on the same team as Ryan McDonagh.

Shattenkirk was offered more money by other teams but chose his hometown Rangers at a reasonable price of $26.6 million over four years.

"Ryan McDonagh was a big part of my decision," Shattenkirk said. "My goal is to be a phenomenal defenseman in all aspects, and I think that Ryan McDonagh will help me achieve that. It was a major part of my decision to be able to play with one of the best." The Rangers trade with Montreal for McDonagh years ago keeps paying benefits.

The native of New Rochelle, New York gave up money to go back home and play for the Rangers. Shattenkirk is an offensive stud who is nothing special defensively but he should quarterback the Rangers power play. That should get him to the 45-50 point mark but he will need help in his own zone during five-on-five play. Draft him in the fourth or fifth round if points are your only consideration.

Shattenkirk scored 13 goals and 56 points in 80 games in 2016-17. He will continue to be an effective fantasy asset next season.

TNZ Fantasy's Top 50 defensemen for 2017-18

Please note: We will update this list throughout the offseason and beginning of 2017-18 season. The updates will probably change the rankings because of players signing with/being traded to new teams, which may increase and/or decrease fantasy value.

When we were making this list of defenseman rankings, we were loojing at fantasy value and production, and that was what we mainly took into consideration for these rankings.

Brent Burns was the top blueliner last season and took home the Norris Trophy. But before Burns' rise to the top, Erik Karlsson, who is No. 2 on our lost, was the top d-man in the NHL.

A huge influence in tbese rankings was the New York Rangers landing defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk. Shattenkirk was one of the top players on his teams when he played for St. Louis and Washington, and he shod be able to do the sabe with the Rangers. Shattenkirk will most likely paired with Ryan McDonagh most of the season, and the two together can be a great defensive combination.

Here are our Top 50 defenseman for the 2017-18 NHL season.

1. Brent Burns, SJS
2. Erik Karlsson, OTT (INJ.)
3. Victor Hedman, TBL
4. Dustin Byfuglien, WPG
5. Roman Josi, NSH
6. Kris Letang, PIT (INJ.)
7. Duncan Keith, CHI
8. Dougie Hamilton, CGY
9. Kevin Shattenkirk, NYR
10. Shea Weber, MTL
11. Drew Doughty, LAK
12. Torey Krug, BOS (INJ.)
13. P.K. Subban, NSH
14. Zach Werenski, CBJ
15. Alex Pietrangelo, STL
16. Oliver Ekman-Larsson, ARI
17. Rasmus Ristolainen, BUF
18. Justin Schultz, PIT
19. Ryan Suter, MIN
20. Shayne Gostisbehere, PHI
21. Justin Faulk, CAR
22. Mark Giordano, CGY
23. Ryan McDonagh, NYR
24. Jake Gardiner, TOR
25. John Klingberg, DAL
26. Oscar Klefbom, EDM
27. Aaron Ekblad, FLA
28. Ryan Ellis, NSH
29. Keith Yandle, FLA
30. Cam Fowler, ANA
31. Jared Spurgeon, MIN
32. John Carlson, WSH
33. Seth Jones, CBJ
34. Colton Parayko, STL (RFA)
35. Zdeno Chara, BOS
36. Jacob Trouba, WPG
37. Matt Dumba, MIN
38. Ivan Provorov, PHI
39. Brent Seabrook, CHI
40. Jaccob Slavin, CAR
41. Dion Phaneuf, OTT
42. Tyson Barrie, COL
43. Matt Niskanen, WSH
44. Marc-Edouard Vlasic, SJS
45. Jake Muzzin, LAK
46. Shea Theodore, VGK
47. Josh Manson, ANA
48. Dmitry Orlov, WSH
49. Nick Leddy, NYI
50. Brandon Carlo, BOS 

Honorable Mentions: Trevor Daley (DET), Alec Martinez (LAK), Morgan Rielly (TOR), Nikita Zaitsev (TOR), Sami Vatanen (ANA - INJ.), TJ Brodie (CGY), Josh Morrissey (WPG), Noah Hanifin (CAR), Esa Lindell (DAL), Andrei Markov (UFA), Mattias Ekholm (NSH), Radko Gudas (PHI), Damon Severson (NJD - RFA),Alexander Edler (VAN), Charlie McAvoy (BOS)

If brave enough to pick him, Islanders' Nick Leddy a wise defensive choice for Tuesday

"The Neutral Zone" Staff Report

Nick Leddy( Anthony Gruppuso/USA TODAY Sports)

Nick Leddy does not have that many goals this season by any means (he only has four), but along with those four goals and an impressive 25 assists, he does make up for those poor stats on the defensive side of things.

Leddy has nine blocked shots and two hits in his past five games, so he may be able to help you in the blocked shots category of earning points.

Leddy's only problem is that for him being a defenseman, his amount of hits in the past five games is lover than most defensemen in the league. His plus-minus rating on the season in 60 games is -10, which is not the best, but also not the worst we've seen.

Fantasy D-men: Flames' Brodie heating up

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hockey Report

TJ Brodie

[TJ] Brodie started to show signs of what he was becoming in 2013-14 when he had 11 points in his final 19 games. Last season, he had NHL-bests in goals (11), assists (30) and points (41), as well as in six other statistical categories. That production made him a hot commodity in fantasy drafts this fall, and he was selected in the 11th round on average in 100 percent of Yahoo leagues. 

But he sustained a broken hand during a preseason game against the Edmonton Oilers that kept him out until Oct. 28. That down time saw his ownership drop and it's still a reason why he's available in some leagues. 

He was held without a point in his first two games and had two goals and six points in his first 14 games. But he's looked every bit as good as last season ever since. He had two goals and six assists during a seven-game point streak between Nov. 28 and Dec. 15, and he has 30 points in his past 36 games. --> Read more on NHL.com

NHL.COM'S TOP 60 DEFENSEMEN RANKINGS

These rankings are based on expectations for the rest of the season. Value is quantified by defense pairings, power-play usage, past performance and overall upside in standard Yahoo categories (goals, assists, plus-minus, penalty minutes, power-play points and shots on goal). 

1. Erik Karlsson, OTT 
2. Brent Burns, D/RW, SJS 
3. Oliver Ekman-Larsson, ARI (+1) 
4. John Klingberg, DAL (-1) 
5. P.K. Subban, MTL 
6. Kris Letang, PIT (+2) 
7. Roman Josi, NSH 
8. Duncan Keith, CHI (-2) 
9. Victor Hedman, TBL 
10. Dustin Byfuglien, D/RW, WPG (+1) 
11. Tyson Barrie, COL (+1) 
12. Drew Doughty, LAK (+1) 
13. Shea Weber, NSH (DTD) 
14. Kevin Shattenkirk, STL (+2) 
15. TJ Brodie, CGY (+5) 
16. Ryan Suter, MIN (-2) 
17. Brent Seabrook, CHI (-2) 
18. John Carlson, WSH (-1) 
19. Jake Muzzin, LAK (-1) 
20. Rasmus Ristolainen, BUF (+2) 
21. Keith Yandle, NYR (+2) 
22. Shayne Gostisbehere, PHI (+2) 
23. Mark Giordano, CGY (+2) 
24. Andrei Markov, MTL (+2) 
25. Justin Faulk, CAR (-6) 
26. Ryan McDonagh, NYR (DTD) 
27. Sami Vatanen, ANA 
28. Torey Krug, BOS (+2) 
29. Dion Phaneuf, OTT (-1) 
30. Anton Stralman, TBL (-1) 
31. Jason Demers, DAL (+1) 
32. Zdeno Chara, BOS (+3) 
33. Nick Leddy, NYI (+3) 
34. Johnny Boychuk, NYI (-3) 
35. Erik Johnson, COL (-2) 
36. Andrej Sekera, EDM (-2) 
37. Marc-Edouard Vlasic, SJS (+4) 
38. Aaron Ekblad, FLA 
39. Francois Beauchemin, COL 
40. Dougie Hamilton, CGY 
41. Mike Green, DET (-4) 
42. Alex Goligoski, DAL 
43. Seth Jones, CBJ 
44. Mattias Ekholm, NSH 
45. Morgan Rielly, TOR 
46. Niklas Kronwall, DET (NEW - INJ.) 
47. Matt Niskanen, WSH 
48. Brian Campbell, FLA (-2) 
49. Colton Parayko, STL (+4) 
50. Cam Fowler, ANA (-1) 
51. Trevor Daley, PIT 
52. Ryan Ellis, NSH (-2) 
53. Alec Martinez, LAK (-1) 
54. Michael Stone, ARI (+3) 
55. Mark Streit, PHI (-7) 
56. Olli Maatta, PIT (-1) 
57. Dmitry Orlov, WSH (NEW) 
58. Jared Spurgeon, MIN (-2) 
59. Jake Gardiner, TOR 
60. Tyler Myers, WPG 

Dropped out: Cody Franson, Nick Holden  

Key injuries: Alex Pietrangelo, Oscar Klefbom, James Wisniewski

Seabrook a wise defensive choice for Thursday

"The Neutral Zone" Staff Report

Brent Seabrook

Brent Seabrook is one of the top defenseman for thew Chicago Blackhawks, and his stats show it.

Just keep in mind that Seabrook is not the cheapest defenseman in daily fantasy sports.

Seabrook has 11 goals and 26 assists on the season. He has three goals and one assist in his past five games.

Also in his past five games, Seabrook has 16 hits and 14 blocked shots. Those stats are outstanding for the Blackhawks d-man.

Although he had an extremely quiet game on Sunday (a 6-1 outdoor loss to the Minnesota Wild), Seabrook should rebound tonight against the Nashville Predators.

Thornton and Subban wise picks for Friday

Joe Thonton

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hockey Report

Joe Thornton - San Jose Sharks: Thornton is currently riding a seven-game point streak and has at least one point in 17 of his last 18 games. He has three goals and 10 assists for 13 points over his last 10 games. The Sharks center goes tonight against the struggling Carolina Hurricanes.

PK Subban

PK Subban - Montreal Canadiens: Subban has six goals and 39 assists for 45 points with 84 hits, 63 blocked shots, and 152 shots on goal in 60 games for the Canadiens this season. Over his last 10 games, the Canadiens defenseman has two goals and six assists for eight points with 18 shots on goal. He goes tonight against the struggling Flyers.

Fantasy Notebook: Malkin and Thornton are good center picks for Tuesday

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hockey Report

Evgeni Malkin

Centers:

High Salary: Evgeni Malkin

Malkin has been playing very well as of late. In his last game, he scored a hat trick, and is currently up to 48 points on the season. He has eight points in his last five games. Even though facing New Jersey will make getting the win for Malkin and the Penguins harder, Malkin should still have a good showing and should most likely score one or two goals in the game.

High Value: Joe Thornton

Thornton has been on fire recently, currently being on a nine-game point streak. He has 20 points in his last 15 games and will have a fairly easy matchup tonight against the Colorado Avalanche. Thornton is your pick if you want a center that does not have an expensive fantasy salary and can produce fantasy points for you.

Wingers:

High Salary: Patrick Kane

Kane has definitely been a key player for the Blackhawks this season, most likely the best player of all 30 teams currently in the NHL. Kane leads the league this season in goals (30), assists (43), and points (73). With Kane facing the struggling Hurricanes tonight, he should add to his stats of the historic season he is currently having.

High Value: Mikkel Boedker

Boedker is having a decent season currently with 12 goals and 22 assists. Although he failed to show up on the scoresheet on Monday, and the fact that he is having an up-and-down season, he should be a very good matchup as he faces Winnipeg tonight.

Defensemen:

High Salary: Erik Karlsson

Karlsson has proved in many recent seasons that he is one of the best defensemen in the entire NHL, and that he can definitely produce fantasy points in almost all of his games. If you are looking for an expensive defenseman for Tuesday night that can also pick up plenty of points, Karlsson is your man.

High Value: Aaron Ekblad

Ekblad is currently on a two-game point streak after recently coming back with an injury. Ekblad, the 2014-15 Calder Trophy winner for the league's top rookie is showing that he is capable of earning fantasy points at a non-expensive fantasy price.

Goaltenders:

High Salary: Roberto Luongo

Luongo has proven all season and throughout his long NHL career that he is truly one of the best goalies currently in the NHL, and he and the Panthers have shown that they can play really well. They have surprised many with their great play this season.

High Value: John Gibson

Gibson has proven so far in his rookie season that he is one of the best backup goaltenders currently in the league. He currently has a record of 11-7-2.

Fantasy Notebook: Kuznetsov and Stepan good centers for Friday

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hockey Report

Derek Stepan

Centers:
High Salary: Evgeny Kuznetsov
Kunetsov managed to get four assists in a win over Columbus and then led to a hat trick against the New York Rangers in what was a 5-2 Capitals win. If Kunetsov keeps up his great play, his salarys on DraftKings and FanDuel will surely rise. Be sure to add him into your lineup for tonight.
 High Value: Derek Stepan
Stepan is currently on a w3-game point streak in which in those three games he has 4 points. In his last game on Tuesday against the Vancouver Canucks, Stepan notched one goal and an assist. Stepan is definitely a center that should do very well against the Carolina Hurricanes tonight.

Wingers:
High Salary: Patrick Kane
Kane may have had a slow night against the Lightning last night, but he did manage to get an assist in his team's loss. With the assist, Kane now has 42 on the season, along with 30 goals with those assists. Kane will sure be a challenge for the Florida Panthers to go against tonight.

High Value: Justin Williams
Williams' salary on DraftKings and FanDuel has risen tremendously because of recent spark in play. On Jan. 17 he notched a hat trick and on Jan. 19 he notched two assists. Williams has been playing very well as of late.

Defensemen:
High Salary: Erik Karlsson
Karlsson has proved in recent seasons that he is clearly an all-star defensemen, one of the best that the league has seen in recent years. If you want an all-star d-man in your lineup tonight you must pick Karlsson

High Value: Ryan McDonagh
McDonagh is the best high-value defenseman available toniight because he is currently on a three-game point streak and has six points in his last six games.
 
Goaltenders:
High Salary: Braden Holtby
Holtby has shown this season and in recent seasons that he is a tremendous all-star goaltender that deserves his high fantasy salary. He and the Capitals are absolutely on fire, so there is no doubt if you want an all-star goaltender in your lineup for tonight you have to pick Holtby.

High Value: Petr Mrazek
Mrazek mave have lost his last two starts but he does have a record of 16-9-4. He will get a nice chance to rebound tonight against the Buffalo Sabres.

Fantasy Notebook: Good lineup picks for Thursday

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hocky Report

LW:
High Salary: Milan Lucic

So far in 2015-16, Lucic has 12 goals and 17 assists, which makes him a strong forward. He averages 2.7 fantasy points a game.

High Value: Jeff Skinner

Like Lucic, Skinner is also high on the goals category with 17 goals so far this season. He has eight assists to go along with that. He averages 2.5 fantasy points per game.

RW:
High Salary: Patrick Kane

Kane is leading the league in scoring currently this season with 30 goals in 49 games played and has an amazing 41 assists to go along with that, and 177 shots on goal as well. He averages 5.8 fantasy points per game.

High Value: Loui Eriksson
In 45 games played, Eriksson has 38 points. He averages 3.2 fantasy points per game.

C:
High Salary: Ryan Johansson

Johansson has 2 goals and 5 assists in his first six games as a Nashville Predators. He averages 4.6 fantasy points per game.

High Value: Joe Thornton

Thornton has 35 points in 44 games played this season and averages 3.1 fantasy points per game.

D:

High Salary: Erik Karlsson

Karlsson has 9 goals and 38 assists in. 46 games played this season. He averages 3.6 fantasy points per game.

High Value: Shayne Gotisbehere

Gotisbehere has 8 goals and 9 assists so far this season, and averages 5.3 fantasy points per game.

G:

High Salary: Corey Crawford

Crawford has a save percentage of at least .900 in nine of his last ten games. He has a .931 SV% so far in 2015-16. He has a league-best six shutouts this season. He averages 4.7 fantasy points per game.

High Value: Connor Hellebuyck

Hellebuyck has a .931 SV% in 19 games so far in 2015--6. He has a .940 SV% in 6 of his last 10 games. He averages 5.3 fantasy points per game.

Fantasy Notebook: Lundqvist is a good high-salary goalie pick for Tuesday

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hockey Report

Henrik Lundqvist is a wise fantasy goalie pick for Tuesday.

(PHOTO: Adam Hunger/USA Today Sports)

Center:
Tyler Seguin - Dallas Stars: Seguin went two games without picking up a point but managed to get back on track on Saturday with a goal and an assist against the Sharks in San Jose. Seguin has 25 goals and 28 assists for 53 points so far in 2015-16. He’s been one of the best centers in fantasy hockey with an average of five fantasy points a game. Seguin against the Kings tonight is a good target if you are looking to spend high fantasy salaries for a center.

Wingers:
Patrick Kane - Chicago Blackhawks: Patrick Kane is absolutely hot on the ice right now. He notched a hat trick on Friday and followed up in his last game on Sunday by scoring a goal and notching an assist. Kane is averaging 5.5 fantasy points per game, but it's hard to pick good players at the other positions because Kane's salary is so high. Therefore, if you pick Kane, you must be wise with your other choices at your other positions.

Alex Ovechkin - Washington Capitals: Ovechkin is averaging 5.1 fantasy points per game so far in 2015-16. He netted his 27th goal of the season on Sunday, which broke a two-game scoreless streak. The only reason not to pick Ovechkin is that sometimes he doesn't really show up on the scoresheet, but on the contrary he does produce amazing stats when he is playing at his best.

Defensemen:
Mark Giordano - Calgary Flames: Giordano saw his six-game point streak come to an end on Saturday. Tonight’s matchup with New Jersey will be very tough for him because the Devils are ranked 1st in points allowed to opposing defensemen. But Giordano has proven that he is capable of racking up fantasy points, and has proven this season that he is definitely fantasy-worthy.

PK Subban - Montreal Canadiens: Subban notched an assist on Sunday and extended his point streak to five games. He has put up eight points over the last nine games and has finally heated up after a slow start to the season. Tonight's matchup against the struggling Bruins makes Subban a wise defensive pick.

Goaltenders:
Henrik Lundqvist - New York Rangers: Lundqvist hasn’t been his usual dominant self this season, but he’s still been able to post 20 wins for the Rangers. His 2.50 GAA is higher than one would expect, but he can still be counted on most nights. Tonight, Lundqvist goes up against the Vancouver Canucks, who so far this season average 2.3 goals per game, where they are currently ranked 26th in the league.