Adam Proteau lists five NHL defensemen who could be moved after Chris Tanev, including Tanev's now-former teammate on the Flames and a Canadiens blueliner.

With veteran defenseman Chris Tanev off the trade block, attention is turning to the blueliners who will be available by or before the NHL’s March 8 trade deadline. 

Here are the five top D-men likely to be moved in the next eight days.

In no particular order:

David Savard, Montreal Canadiens

The Habs value Savard for many reasons, including his steady defensive play and his $3.5-million salary for this season and the next. The 33-year-old’s 6-foot-1 size and ability to chip in a little bit of offense with nine assists and 13 points in 37 games makes him all the more attractive of an asset. But he’s particularly interesting because he’s a right-shot D-man, and that’s a rarity this season for any blueliner on the trade block.

Savard is putting in good minutes with the Canadiens, averaging 20:21 of ice time per game. But on a better team, he’d be even more valuable. Montreal could keep him around, but the offers for Savard may well prove to be too tempting for Habs GM Kent Hughes to resist.

Noah Hanifin, Calgary Flames

The fire sale with the Flames is almost over, with GM Craig Conroy moving out Tanev, fellow defenseman Nikita Zadorov and star center Elias Lindholm this season. But Hanifin is the best trade asset Calgary has left, and several teams will heavily pursue the veteran blueliner. Given his UFA status at season's end, Hanifin could be seen as a pure rental. But the Flames could get more if Conroy trades the 27-year-old Hanifin to a team he’s willing to sign a contract extension with.

Hanifin’s current salary is $4.95 million, which may be too costly for some teams. But as we saw in the Tanev deal, a third team could help facilitate a trade by retaining some of Hanifin’s salary. The team that does land Hanifin will have to pay a lot – we’re thinking at least a first-round pick, an above-average NHL-ready player, and another prospect – but Hanifin is the most talented, minute-munching defenseman available – he currently averages 23:44 per game – and Conroy can get the Flames a king’s ransom by dealing him.

Sean Walker and Nick Seeler, Philadelphia Flyers

We included both Flyers defensemen in this section because they both fall under the same category. 

They’re about the same age, as Walker is 29, and Seeler is 30. They’re both relatively inexpensive – Walker has a $2.65-million contract, while Seeler’s salary this year is $775,000. They’re also both going to be UFAs this summer. 

The key question with both players is what Flyers GM Daniel Briere will really do by the deadline, considering how surprisingly good the team has been this season. If Briere decides to be a buyer, one of Seeler or Walker could sign a contract extension and remove themselves from the block. Jamie Drysdale's week-to-week upper-body injury could prevent one of them from being moved as well.

But in the macro picture, Briere probably needs to trade both D-men and continue building for the future. He won’t get a ton of assets for either Seeler or Walker, but decent draft picks and slightly above-average prospects will probably be Briere’s asking price in any trade. 

That said, we believe Walker and Seeler will be moved by the deadline. Briere is a smart guy, and he knows that a little bit more patience – whether the team wins or loses this season – will pay off in a big way two or three seasons from now. Seeler and Walker don’t factor in as core components, which is why Briere likely will trade them.

Matt Dumba, Arizona Coyotes

As the Coyotes free fall in the standings and virtually guarantee they won’t be a playoff team this season, their looming UFAs are now likely to be shipped out. That includes Dumba, another valuable right-shot defenseman who can be a No. 4 or 5 D-man on a legitimate Cup contender and give a team 20 solid minutes of ice time per game.

Dumba’s $3.9-million salary makes a deal tougher to put together, and he’s no longer much of a contributor on offense, but the Yotes have to move him out and see what they can get. A third-round pick, maybe? A decent AHL prospect? That’s probably the ceiling for Dumba, but that’s also why he’s likely to be dealt.

Joel Edmundson, Washington Capitals

The Capitals have yet to decide whether they will be sellers or buyers at the deadline, but either way, we believe they will trade Edmundson. Teams value his 6-foot-5 frame, and he can improve the third defense pairing on a much better team than Washington.

As a UFA this coming summer, Edmundson will probably be a pure rental player, so he won’t get all that much for the Caps in any move. But every draft pick or prospect will help the Capitals build a strong team two or three years from now. Edmundson will be long gone by then, which is why we expect he’ll be dealt by this year’s deadline.