Major news outlet reveals Bruins have some of NHL's best shutdown defensemen

The B's have allowed 215 goals in 80 games, an average of 2.69 goals against per game, which is the fourth lowest mark across the NHL this season.

While the team's systems, combined with one of the hottest goaltending tandems in the show, are definitely behind the team's success without the puck, a lot of credit has to be given to the Bruins defensive corps as well.

Aside from Charlie McAvoy, the Bruins don't have true superstars on the backend, so the collective unit excels by working as a group.

In an article published on The Athletic website, one of the company's staff writers tried to answer the following question : Who are the NHL's best shutdown defensemen and why are they so valuable?

To do so, he looked at more than just the goals against aspect of each defenseman , but also at how much time they spend at five-on-five, the quality of the opposition they play against, how many shots and scoring opportunities they give up, and much more!

Once all stats were compiled, here's the order The Athletic posted in regards to the NHL's top shutdown defensemen. Let's just say the Bruins are well represented!

1. Jonas Brodin
2. Charlie McAvoy
3. Chris Tanev
4. Ryan McDonagh
5. Miro Heiskanen
6. Jaccob Slavin
7. Matthew Grzelcyk
8. Michael Anderson
9. K'Andre Miller
10. Brandon Carlo

You can visit The Athletic's website to see the rest of this season's Top 20 Best Shutdown Defensemen of the NHL!