With NHL free agency getting started on July 1^st, we’re going to take a quick look around the league to see who is available and who the best option is.

Continuing on with our free agent rankings, today we’ll take a look at the defensemen that are available. The list is a little bit longer so I tried to rank the top 15 available defensemen as opposed to the top 10 goalies that are hitting the market.

Defensemen are a lot harder to rank because every team wants something different. I could rank them based on offensive performance, but then I’m ignoring some of the better “defensive defensemen”. So keep that in mind when reading below whom I think are top 15 available on July 1^st.

1. Jay Bouwmeester (Florida) – It’s hard to argue that Bouwmeester isn’t the top d-man available on July 1^st. Websites and blogs went crazy around the trade deadline with tons of scenarios of where he could be traded to. Florida decided to hang on to him at the time in hopes of making the playoffs, but they fell just short and Jay-Bo is as good as gone. Former Florida GM Jacques Martin must have known this and took off to coach the Montreal Canadiens this upcoming season.

He played in all 82 games for Florida last season racking up 42 points in the process. He has six years of NHL experience playing in all 82 games in five of those six seasons and he is only 25 years old. I suppose based on those facts one could say he is definitely worthy of the big payday, but I’d be hesitant to throw the bank at him. We saw how that worked out for Chicago last off-season and I’m willing to bet they would love a way out of Brian Campbell’s enormous contract.

If Florida is smart (highly doubtful), they will trade his rights before July 1^st so they at least get something for him. Word is the Flyers are doing everything in their power to acquire his rights. In a recent Palm Beach Post article, it was said that “Bouwmeester, who is building a house in Edmonton, has made it known he wants to play somewhere hockey is taken more seriously than in South Florida."

2. Rob Blake (San Jose) – Rob Blake has consistently been one of the better defensemen in the league, but at age 39 he is running out of time. He tallied his best season last year with San Jose since his 2005-06 campaign with Colorado. He finished the regular season by playing in 73 games, tallying 45 points and finishing +15.

Blake made a cool five million last season so that is enough to scare off most teams. I’d say his best bet would be to stay in San Jose for another season or two before hanging up the skates. I could see San Jose signing him back since they were very successful during the regular season before choking it all way in the first round. The tandem of Blake and Boyle is something I’d want to hang on to if I were a GM. Then again, San Jose might go in a completely different direction after their most recent playoff debacle.

3. Mathieu Schneider (Montreal) – Schneider came to Montreal before the trade deadline and made an immediate impact with the Habs before getting injured and missing the rest of the season. In 44 games with the Thrashers last season he had 15 points and was a -10. In the following 23 games with Montreal, he had 17 points and finished -2. Schneider is no spring chicken but I think he would be a valuable asset to a team looking for help on the power play this upcoming year. Anything more than a one year deal might be a bit much though. I would have zero issues with my team signing him, assuming it was a reasonable short-term deal.

4. Steve Montador (Boston) – Like Schneider, Montador was a trade deadline acquisition except he went to Boston. He is a perfect example of what I wrote about before starting the rankings in terms of point production alone. This guy isn’t going to light up any scoreboards, but I would LOVE to have him on my team. He has that “Don’t Take Crap from Anyone” attitude that I love in a blue liner (when he isn’t playing my team). With him only being 29, I’d jump for joy if my team signed the guy to at least a three year deal. In fact, please excuse me while I write a letter to the GM.

5. Rob Scuderi (Pittsburgh) – Rob Scuderi is another type of defenseman I would love to see playing in Buffalo. He has shown he is durable by playing in 78, 71 and 81 regular season games in the past three seasons for Pittsburgh. This past season was his best in term of plus/minus finishing +23. The previous two seasons he was a +3 which is still good overall. Scuderi is only 30 years old and will no doubt be looking for a raise after only making $750,000 this past season. If Pittsburgh can’t bring him back, look for them to trade his rights like they did for Ryan Malone last off-season.

6. Mattias Ohlund (Vancouver) – Ohlund hits the market after spending his entire career with Vancouver. He has been a very consistent defenseman in the points department finishing with 30, 35, 20, 28, 36, 29, 34, 33, 31, 24 and 25 respectively. He made $3.5 million this past season for the Canucks and a contract similar to that is to be expected. He is only 32 so whichever team locks him down can do it with a solid three or four year deal and expect the same point production he has given in the past. I’m not sure if Vancouver will bring him back, only because of the fact that they need to deal with the Sedin twins and I would assume that they are the top priority.

7. Jaroslav Spacek (Buffalo) – I’ve been a fan of Spacek for most of his tenure in Buffalo, then again, it’s nice to see a defenseman actually score once in a while. He has said publicly that he doesn’t want to go somewhere new and start over again, but he would need to take a pay cut to stay in Buffalo and I just can’t see him doing that. This past season was his best with Buffalo playing in 80 games and finishing with 45 points. Like I said, I would like to see him back with the Sabres but it would need to be for less than the $3.3 million he made in his last deal.

8. Marc-Andre Bergeron (Minnesota) – Bergeron made approx. $1.7 million this past season in Minnesota and he produced accordingly. He had 32 points and was a +5 in 72 regular season games. At the age of 28, he is still a little raw in the experience department but some team will be calling for his services. I could see him getting a little bit of a pay increase but he shouldn’t get any more than $2.5 million per season.

9. Nick Boynton (Florida) – Lucky for Florida, they have two defenseman in the top 10 (and a goalie in the top 10 as well). Boynton is only 30 years old with seven years of NHL experience. He has had some durability issues in the past playing in 54, 59, 79 and 68 games in the past four seasons. This past season was his best statistically as he finished with 21 points and was +7. If Florida loses Jay-Bo on July 1^st (they will), they should look to sign Boynton so not all is lost.

10. Adrian Aucoin (Calgary) – Some might ask what my criteria is for coming up with these rankings and to be honest, there are several factors that go into it. For instance, last season Aucoin played in 81 games and finished with 34 points which is much better than Nick Boynton who is listed above. However, Aucoin also made $4 million last season (Boynton made approx. $2.95) and Aucoin is five years older. So if I were playing GM I might value Boynton a little bit more because he is younger and would help my cap situation slightly. Aucoin has also only played 70+ regular season games seven times in 15 seasons which is also something that might concern me.

11. Paul Mara (NY Rangers) – I’ve seen quite a few Rangers games and Mara isn’t exactly someone who strikes fear in me when he is on the ice. In fact, his play has dropped off dramatically since tallying 47 points in 2005-06 with Phoenix (23, 17 and 21). He has a career plus/minus of -95 which isn’t exactly a bargaining chip when going to the table this summer with league GM’s. However, his salary was only $1.95 million which isn’t much considering some of the other deals that will be flying around. If the Rangers are still trying to keep their fantasy team together, he’ll most likely be back with the Rangers next season.

12. Derek Morris (NY Rangers) – Morris was a trade deadline acquisition that basically had no impact for the Rangers as they choked in yet another post-season appearance. Kudos to the Rangers for giving it the old college try though. He was fairly productive in terms of points after only getting 12 points in 57 games with Phoenix, finishing with another eight in 18 for the Rangers. (I guess it makes a difference when you’re playing on a real NHL team). Regardless, his contract is a hefty $3.95 million and if he is looking to make anything around that, I’d rather he go to another team than mine because that money would be better off going to someone else.

13. Hal Gill (Pittsburgh) – Hal Gill hasn’t been the most durable defenseman for Pittsburgh, but has been one of the better ones. He only had 10 points in 62 games this season, but finished +11 which in my book is a pretty decent number. Before his injury plagued season a year ago, He finished two campaigns in Toronto scoring 20 points in both and finishing in the positives in both. He is a sound defenseman who hasn’t finished worse than -4 since the 1998-99 season. With a price tag of $2.1 million, I wouldn’t mind seeing him suit up for my team.

14. Jordan Leopold (Calgary) – In yet another trade deadline acquisition, Leopold was sent to Calgary to help them finally win the Stanley Cup. Obviously the Flames failed in that bid and Leopold didn’t really produce the way he was expected. In 64 games with Colorado he racked up 20 points, but was a - 10. In the following 19 games in Calgary, he only had four points and was a -5. He only made $1.5 million, but I don’t see anything in him that can’t be found in the AHL. If my team signed him I would just shrug my shoulders and sigh a little bit. In fact, if Buffalo made any play for Leopold I would have to wonder what exactly he brings to the table that Nathan Paetsch can’t already.

15. Karlis Scrastins (Florida) – Rounding out the top 15 is yet another Florida Panther. Scrastins played in 80 games last season racking up 18 points and finished +9. While those numbers are decent, they are somewhat misleading. Before last season, the last time he played in 70+ games was in 2005-06 with Colorado. Before last season, the last time he finished with a +1 or better was in 2003-04 with Colorado. So as you can see, he might be a decent pickup at the right price, but most GM’s might be leery of signing him to anything major or long-term. I can see Florida bringing him back as well to help hide the fact that they royally screwed up the Jay-Bo situation.

1. San Jose Sharks: The Sharks came out the gates smoking this season and haven’t stopped yet. San Jose has historically done well in the regular season, but often times fallen short in the playoffs, so time will tell if this Sharks team is for real or not.

2. Boston Bruins: Boston has hands down been the class of the Eastern Conference this season. After sneaking into the playoffs last season with the 8th seed, they gave the top seeded Canadiens all they could handle. For most Bruins fans, that was a sign of things to come this season. If Boston can keep on their game for the second half of the season, look for them to hold down the top spot and challenge for the Presidents Trophy.

3. Detroit Red Wings: Detroit is nipping at San Jose for the top spot in the West. After winning the Stanley Cup last season, all they did during the off-season was dramatically improve by signing Marian Hossa. They also replaced Dominik Hasek with Ty Conklin, who has rewarded them with five shut-outs so far and his second consecutive Winter Classic victory.

4. Washington Capitals: The Capitals have built on their post-season experience last season and have a strangle hold on the SouthEast division so far this season. They have gotten good contributions by several players, including Alex Ovechkin and new goalie Jose Theodore, and now they look to continue rising up the standings in the East. No matter what teams try to do, they can’t seem to stop Alex Ovechkin, as he continues to prove himself as the best player in the league right now.

5. New Jersey Devils: The Devils have surprised many fans by doing as well as they have considering they are missing the cornerstone of the franchise, Martin Brodeur. The Devils are neck and neck with the Rangers and Flyers in the division, but if they can get Brodeur back in time for the playoff race other teams in the East need to be on the lookout. Signing Brendan Shanahan in the middle of the season won’t hurt their chances either.

6. Montreal Canadiens: The Canadiens were most experts pick as the top team in the East, but they have fallen well behind Boston in that race. Still, with half a season to go, anything can happen. They will need to get quite a bit of help in the second half if they plan on winning the NorthEast division, and we’re not talking about the type of help they received in loading up for the All-Star game.

7. Calgary Flames: The Flames are always in the discussion of teams out West due to the consistent play from goaltender Miika Kiprusoff. If he can withstand the usual heavy workload during the stretch run, I look for Calgary to make some noise in April.

8. New York Rangers: Like said above, the Rangers are in a tight division race and could easily fall out of the playoff race altogether if they go on any kind of extended losing streak during the second half. However, if they can get strong goaltending from Henrik Lundqvist, they should be able to make it into the playoffs. Now whether they make it past the second round this year or not is still to be determined.

9. Chicago Blackhawks: The Blackhawks have been a great story so far this season. After years and years of losing, they seem to have turned it around. They made a risky move this season by firing their coach extremely early into the season, but that doesn’t seem to have affected them very much. Much of their success will come down to how well young stars Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews play.

10. Buffalo Sabres: The Sabres started out hot, cooled down, and have since heated right back up once the calendar hit 2009. Since New Years the Sabres have been much better and goalie Ryan Miller looks like he is on top of his game. It will be interesting to see how the Sabres do down the stretch because they have plenty of teams nipping at them in the standings.

11. Philadelphia Flyers: The Flyers have rebounded from a slow start and look back in form so far this season. They will most likely improve even more when they get forward Danny Briere back from injury. However, they will need to clear some cap space in order to make that move, so it will be interesting to see how the front office handles that situation. Much of the Flyers success during the second half will hinge on how well their goaltenders perform and if they get hot at the right time again.

12. Phoenix Coyotes: The Coyotes are doing well so far this season, despite facing bankruptcy and other issues off the ice. They have been a much better team at home than on the road, so they might not last long if they squeak into the playoffs. Then again, once the playoffs start, anything can happen.

13. Anaheim Ducks: The Ducks are hanging around out West but haven’t been very consistent so far this season. They have been pretty average at home and on the road this year. They will need to step up their game down the stretch to continue their post-season streak or they will be watching from home this year.

14. Minnesota Wild: The Wild have gotten very good goaltending from Niklas Backstrom. It shows in the standings as their goal differential is much better than the other teams they are surrounded with in the standings. If the Wild sneak into the post-season, they could cause some trouble for the higher ranked teams, much like Edmonton did a few years ago.

15. Florida Panthers: Florida has done very well so far this season, considering most experts didn’t even have them getting near the playoffs. The play from Florida has been good enough so far this season to have Pittsburgh looking in from the outside at the Eastern Conference playoff picture, but there is still plenty of time for Florida to take control or fall apart. If they slip up and fall out of the race, look for them to deal star defenseman Jay Bouwmeester before the trade deadline.