NHL stats: Blue-line point production

The Colorado Avalanche topped the San Jose Sharks in overtime on Sunday, a matchup of the league's two most "top-heavy" teams in the league in terms of offensive production.

In other words, when Jan Hejda of the Avalanche got a point on the winning goal, it was a rare thing indeed. The Sharks and Avalanche have each received just 29 points from their collection of defencemen. That's tied for worst in the league, with Colorado fans witnessing their blue-liners score goals just twice through 24 games.

So at more or less the halfway mark of the season, it's fun to look at this statistical category in and of itself. There's no grand sweeping conclusion, but it's worth pointing out that eight of the top 10 teams in scoring by defencemen are in playoff position, with the Jets close at ninth place

Caveats apply, as they often do with these type of things. New Jersey ranks near the bottom in points, but that's in no small part a reflection of the system they've chosen to play. If a team plays a forward on the point during their power plays, that will also likely depress the totals.

The point totals aren't always an accurate reflection of the symbiosis between defence and offence. You'd have to watch the tape to find out which teams generate the most "third assists" from defencemen. Meanwhile, with all respect to the fine Kris Letang, Pittsburgh's defence probably doesn't rank anyway near third if not for Sidney Crosby's ability to singlehandedly generate points for all of his teammates.

Team scoring: Defencemen

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

TEAM	GP	GOALS	ASSISTS	POINTS
Montreal	26	17	57	74
Pittsburgh	26	14	53	67
Toronto	26	10	50	60
Winnipeg	25	13	42	55
St. Louis	25	11	44	55
Chicago	26	8	45	53
Los Angeles	23	12	36	48
Carolina	24	12	36	48
Tampa Bay	25	15	32	47
Ottawa	25	14	33	47
NY Rangers	24	10	37	47
Phoenix	25	11	35	46
Columbus	26	10	36	46
Anaheim	24	7	39	46
Philadelphia	27	9	36	45
Vancouver	24	15	29	44
Detroit	26	11	32	43
Calgary	23	9	33	42
Florida	26	8	34	42
Washington	24	12	29	41
NY Islanders	26	11	30	41
Minnesota	24	8	32	40
Dallas	24	5	34	39
Nashville	25	10	28	38
Boston	22	9	29	38
New Jersey	26	6	31	37
Buffalo	26	11	24	35
Edmonton	25	11	22	33
San Jose	24	6	23	29
Colorado	24	2	27	29

Notes:

It's true that Montreal has played more games than most teams, but leading defenceman scorer P.K. Subban missed six of the team's games.

Ottawa has still managed an impressive total despite the absence of last year's Norris Trophy winner, Erik Karlsson. Patrick Wiercioch is no Karlsson, but he's managed a respectable eight points in 21 games since the call up.

Minnesota is kept from the bottom of the list by Ryan Suter, whose goal and 17 assists are good for nearly 45 per cent of the Wild's defencemen total.

And where would Edmonton be without first-year standout Justin Schultz, with 15 of the blue-line's 33 points?

If you believe that goals are a more impressive measurement of back-end offensive support, the top five ranks as follows: Montreal (17), Tampa Bay (15), Vancouver (15), Pittsburgh (14), and Ottawa (14).