Quickest route to a fast buck now begins at the blue line

MONTREAL - Over the last three seasons, the Senators have seen the following among the players exiting Canada's capital: Zdeno Chara, Tom Preissing, Wade Redden, Joe Corvo, and Andrej Meszaros.

All defensemen. All who can skate. And all who can retrieve the puck and get it out of the defensive zone as fast as possible.

It may not be a surprise, then, that the perpetual playoff contenders currently find themselves in 13th place, 12 points out of a playoff spot.

"It's huge," Ottawa forward Dany Heatley said of the significance of having puck-moving defensemen. "If you get the puck going in stride and with speed, it's everything for your attack. It's such a big part of the game right now to have that puck-moving, fast-skating defenseman. And not only defensively. It's huge for your offense."

Appropriately, it's even less a surprise that the most coveted acquisitions come the March 4 trade deadline are those types of players. Several of the NHL's elite puck-moving defensemen will dress for tonight's All-Star Game at the Bell Centre - Florida's Jay Bouwmeester, Toronto's Tomas Kaberle, San Jose's Dan Boyle, Chicago's Brian Campbell, and Anaheim's Scott Niedermayer - because of the ability to retrieve pucks, look up ice, and spark the transition game.

Sound like a simple job? Think again. You have to race back into your zone after a puck. While doing so, you take a look over your shoulder, read how the forecheck is coming, and determine where you want to make your first pass. Then you find the puck, elude the forecheck (remember, your partner isn't allowed to hold up oncoming forwards with a stick in the gut), and either make a crisp outlet pass or stickhandle out of the zone.

"The less time you spend in your own end is always good," said Bouwmeester. "The way the rules are now, it puts an emphasis on moving quickly and getting to pucks. And being able to skate, too. You can't hold up guys. You've got to be able to do things a little differently. It's what you do. Teams do their homework now. You know what kind of forecheck is coming after you. You have to go into things with a game plan. It's about being prepared."

In turn, puck-moving defensemen have allowed forwards such as Carolina's Eric Staal to earn an All-Star appearance (Corvo and Joni Pitkanen are the Hurricanes' best on the blue line).

"It's a huge part," Staal said of personal and team success. "When our defense is skating back hard for pucks and being able to break out and get pucks to our forwards, it helps out and creates a lot of the offense for us. We talk about it going into every game - getting back hard for pucks and making sure we're making plays for each other coming out of our own end."

Ex-Carolina coach Peter Laviolette emphasized an aggressive five-man attack that activated the defensemen and emphasized a heavy forecheck from the forwards. But with Paul Maurice taking over for Laviolette, there's been an even greater importance placed on puck retrieval to generate even more offense.

"I think it's been stressed and harped on a lot more with [Maurice]," Staal said. "He's pushing everybody, as a unit of five, to go back harder, be open for each other, and make plays. Not always look for the rim or look for the chip, but look to make those passes."

Most recently, the Red Wings have mastered this style and ridden it to last season's Stanley Cup. Starting with No. 1 defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom, the aim is to find pucks and send them up to the forwards with speed through the neutral zone. That way, the forwards can attack the offensive zone with momentum and keep opposing defensemen backing up.

The Bruins don't have players with the skill and hands of the Wings, but they've employed their own version of puck possession by emphasizing retrieval and the transition game.

"It's the key to your attack," said Buffalo forward Thomas Vanek, whose Sabres also strive for quick transition. "The faster the D can get the puck up to you, the faster you can do your transition and a fast break. That's the way the game is going. The best defensemen are the puck-carrying speed defensemen, not the ones who just hammer it off the wall. Those defensemen are needed as well, but you look at the ones who are most successful - Brian Campbell, Dan Boyle, Jay Bouwmeester - and they're all great skaters."

Although the Bruins could use some up-front punch - particularly a lefthanded shot - the best help would come on defense. Last season, San Jose acquired Campbell, a free agent-to-be, from Buffalo for forward Steve Bernier and a 2008 first-round pick. This year, Bouwmeester, who will hit unrestricted free agency July 1, will be the most sought-after prize come the trade deadline. A top-end defenseman such as Bouwmeester would require general manager Peter Chiarelli to pay a heavy price, most likely a roster player, prospect, and a first-round pick.

But because of how limited the supply is for such players, Chiarelli will have company.

"I'm sure," one Eastern Conference executive said recently, "like every other team, he's out looking for a top-four D."

Fluto Shinzawa can be reached at fshinzawa@globe.com.