Defensemen are never that easy to come by on the waiver wire in fantasy hockey. Typically you can strike gold on one or two, but drafting has to be better than it is with forwards for the most part since there are fewer options. That being said, certain players step up when they get opportunities or just perform well and aren’t given the proper attention. Here are three top defensemen options from the waiver wire that you could stream this week.
Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire: Defensemen to Target for Week 7
Olen Zellweger, Anaheim Ducks
The defense of the Anaheim Ducks has not been impressive this season, but Olen Zellweger is starting to stand out from the rest. In the past two weeks (six games), he has three goals and five points. Three of those points have come on the power play as well. The young defenseman is now up to four goals and eight points on the season through 16 games heading into Tuesday’s action and he’s continuing to get opportunities, especially with Cam Fowler out of the lineup with an injury.
Zellweger will shoot, deliver some hits, and block shots, while also managing to get a penalty in each of his previous two games. He is currently playing on the second pairing and on the top power-play unit, so I don’t expect the production to slow to a stop anytime soon as he will only keep getting better. The Ducks play the Buffalo Sabres this week, but have four games next week and play the Seattle Kraken next Monday before we are back here looking at defensemen to stream.
Travis Sanheim, Philadelphia Flyers
There is a little higher chance that other fantasy hockey managers have jumped on Travis Sanheim by now, but he could still be available in a number of leagues. The Philadelphia Flyers’ defenseman is playing a ton, logging over 30 minutes in three of the past five games. He is also leading the defense again like he did last season. Sanheim has two goals and six points in the past three games.
To go along with Sanheim’s uptick in offense, he has also been providing some penalty minutes, shooting at least two times per game and blocking at least two shots per game, all while still playing physically as well. Since he plays so much, there is a ton of time each game to add to his stats which will improve his fantasy value a good amount. The Flyers still play the Carolina Hurricanes and Chicago Blackhawks this week.
Sam Girard, Colorado Avalanche
Sam Girard is always a bit of a sneaky option in fantasy hockey but generally hangs around the waiver wire. He is on the second power-play and penalty-killing units as well as the second pairing, so he gets his chances in all situations every game. He won’t score a lot as a defender and never has, but especially with a generally healthy lineup like the Colorado Avalanche now have, he will get assists from the dynamic offense.
Girard has a goal and five points in the last seven games, recording a point in four of them. He has his moments where he can shoot a fair bit and hit a lot, but the most consistent parts of his game are blocking shots and getting assists because he’s quick, can move the puck, and is willing to get in front of pucks. Girard has mostly been logging over 20 minutes per night of ice time and even though both of the Avalanche’s remaining matchups this week aren’t easy, you still get two more games to stream him against the Washington Capitals and the Florida Panthers.
Related: Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire: Week 7 Forward Streams
For how thin the waiver wire for defensemen can get and if you’re struggling to find someone after one of your players got injured, these are three solid options for this week that can also extend further because of their situations and potential to produce. Check back next week for more top options to stream in fantasy hockey.