Blue Line Buzz: Studs and Duds

So, let me get this straight…

The Red Wings — a team that should be looking to jettison its veterans and hand over the reins to its young players, has just one right-handed defenseman on their roster and continues to employ Jonathan Ericsson — decided to let Alexey Marchenko go for nothing?

Though Marchenko hasn't shown any signs that he can be anything more than a second-pairing defenseman, he's a 6-foot-3, right-handed shot who is just 25 years old. He was second on the Wings in plus-minus and blocked shots per game. So much about running an NHL team is about asset management, yet the Wings allowed 29 other teams to get him for free. I get the Wings needed to make room for Brendan Smith, who is returning from a knee injury, but Marchenko doesn't seem like a logical victim of their roster squeeze.

Worse, it was the Leafs that claimed him, a historical and divisional rival that has a coach that knows him well. Even if Marchenko doesn't move the needle very much, at least he gives the Leafs another option on the right side, and, perhaps more importantly, gives Mike Babcock the option of sitting Roman Polak. To make room for Marchenko, the Leafs waived poor Frank Corrado, who stewed in the press box the entire season save for two games and the occasional conditioning stint in the AHL, and in retrospect was probably just keeping a spot warm until the Leafs found a better option.

The Avalanche also made a minor change to their blue line, claiming Mark Barberio off waivers from Montreal and waiving Eric Gelinas. The Habs had previously acquired Nikita Nesterov and had no room for Barberio, an offensive defenseman who's had tons of success at the AHL level but has accomplished little in 160 career NHL games. After scoring 54 points over three seasons with the Devils, Gelinas, a former second-round pick, was supposed to be a valuable piece of the Avs' blue line. However, he's scored just one assist in 27 games this season, and at a cost of over $1.5, is unlikely to be retained.

Barberio won't save the Avs' season. No one can. But he did play over 20 minutes in his Avs debut, showing that there's still some value to be had, especially if power-play quarterback Tyson Barrie (lower body) misses more time.

The trade deadline is less than a month away and again defensemen have become a hot commodity, but no one's been willing to pull the trigger because almost everyone is still in the playoff race. The Kevin Shattenkirk trade watch is still on, so stay tuned.

Studs of the Week:

Matt Niskanen, Capitals – He was a huge catalyst for the Caps' three-game winning streak, registering two assists against Boston, an assist and three blocked shots in a one-goal win against Montreal, and then blocked five shots in a 5-0 win over L.A. Over his past 31 games, Niskanen has scored four goals and 16 assists. Despite being a model of consistency for most of the season, Niskanen's home-road splits are strangely disproportionate, scoring 20 of his 29 points away from the Verizon Center.

Brent Burns, Sharks – With a goal and three assists this past week, he's now just eight goals away from 30 and remains the most valuable fantasy defenseman this season. The Sharks are on an absolute roll, winning eight of their past 10 and have a three-point cushion for the Pacific Division lead with the second-best goal differential in the conference. The question now isn't whether Burns will win the scoring title among defensemen – the real question that should be asked right now is if he can do it again next year.

Adam Larsson, Oilers – Remind me again which team's winning that trade? There's no argument Taylor Hall is the more talented player, but Larsson's been a steady presence on the blue line and turned in a gem of a game against Montreal with seven hits and two blocked shots in a 1-0 win. With 14 points on the season, Larsson is still largely off the fantasy radar, but remember this is just his first season with the Oilers, and the 24-year-old could have a lot of upside next year.

Drew Doughty, Kings – Doughty notched an assist in each of the five games during the Kings' winning streak before getting shut out by the Caps. Still, Doughty logged 30:33 in the loss and finished the game with an even rating even though the Kings allowed five goals. He finished the week with an additional six hits and six blocked shots.

John Klingberg, Stars – Two losses to division rivals Chicago and Winnipeg will hurt down the road as the Stars try to come out of the woods and find their way back into the playoff picture, but Klingberg did his part and extended his point streak to four games. The entire Stars team has been a disappointment, so Klingberg can escape some criticism there, but he's still on pace to fall short of last year's total for points and shots on goal.

Duds of the Week:

P.K. Subban, Predators – Subban got a pass last week because he just returned from a lengthy injury, but the Predators still haven't improved much since his return, doing their best Jekyll and Hyde impression this past week alternating wins and losses. Subban has failed to notch a point in his past three games, and in two of those games managed to have just one shot on net. The Predators are still in playoff position, but that's also because Dallas and St. Louis are having nightmare seasons.

Mark Giordano, Flames – The Flames righted the ship briefly with three straight wins before losing to the Rangers, but Giordano's point drought has now been extended to eight games. With just 22 points on the season, there's still a good chance he manages to score 40, but anything below that would represent his worst statistical season in four years. It's amazing how many mediocre teams in the West are still in the playoff race.

Aaron Ekblad, Panthers – Tom Rowe's report card is still in progress, and Aleksander Barkov and Jonathan Huberdeau's return to the lineup has also coincided with a three-game winning streak, but Ekblad continues to come up with zeros across the board on offense. He has just seven goals and 15 points this season and hasn't appeared on the scoresheet in five games. His production has unsurprisingly dropped because the blue line lost some key pieces this summer, but no one really anticipated Ekblad would be struggling this much.

Zach Bogosian, Sabres – Bogosian missed Saturday's game with a rib injury, and the immediate fear is that he'll miss even more time. When he plays he's a very good two-way defenseman with an underrated slap shot, but his career has been plagued by injuries, which certainly hurts his ability to improve and make consistent contributions. He was on the ice for all five goals in a 5-2 loss to Montreal and finished with a minus-2 rating against Dallas.

Recommended Pickup:

Jacob Trouba, Jets – He does just about everything you'd want to in a defenseman, and after a brief contract holdout, he's been an indispensable part of the Jets' back end. He averaged 26 minutes per game this past week and registered 11 shots, seven hits, four blocked shots and 17 PIM — far better numbers than Dustin Byfuglien. Trouba doesn't have the same offensive ceiling, but you're looking at a a player that can contribute in multiple categories, averaging 2.45 shots, 1.75 hits and 1.98 blocks per game, which is quite comparable to Doughty, who is averaging 2.28 shots, 1.64 hits and 1.47 blocks. Trouba is owned in less than 50 percent of all Yahoo leagues. The Big Board:

^ = stock rising
˅ = stock dropping