Stay-at-home defenceman

In ice hockey, a stay-at-home defenceman, also known as defensive defencemen or shutdown defencemen, is a defenceman who plays a very defensive-first game. Because these players are focused on defending rather than attacking, their offensive statistics tend to be on the lower side of average. These players usually play with a more physical style and are often used to neutralize the opposing team's offensive players by landing strong hits and blocking shots.

Stay-at-home defencemen normally are put in penalty kill situations. They are often partnered with offensive-minded defencemen. Effective stay-at-home defensemen typically have high plus/minus ratings.