Russo and Smith: Forget the Calder — ‘stud’ rookie Brock Faber deserves Norris Trophy love

The Minnesota Wild were at a bar late one night during their Sweden trip in mid-November when Brock Faber surprised teammates with a song.

The group had also done karaoke that week as part of their team bonding plan, but this was a separate outing with players only. Faber, the 21-year-old rookie, showed off his singing skills, delivering a rendition of the U.S. national anthem. It wasn’t a dare by the veterans, or a rookie-party required rite of passage.

“He just came up with it himself,” said Jake Middleton, Faber’s current defense partner. “He just took the microphone by the reins. Very cool under pressure.”

Speaking of cool under pressure, on the ice, Faber, the former Gophers captain, has wowed teammates and opponents with his play and his poise, including a career-high 31 minutes, 34 seconds of playing time in Saturday’s 2-1 shootout win over Vancouver. The Maple Grove native was expected to take on a top-four role vacated by veteran Matt Dumba. But just how good and how important Faber has been for the Wild, well, that’s been one of the season’s most pleasant surprises (and saving graces).

It’s crazy to think now that Faber, not taking his spot on the roster for granted, stayed in a hotel during training camp — just in case, in his mind, he didn’t make the team.

“He’s an absolute stud,” Middleton said. “It’s how you can describe a guy like him. The way he plays, he’s got the maturity level of a 10-year vet. Everyone here says the same thing. You can’t compliment him enough. It’s just impressive. He’s a horse. He doesn’t get tired. He plays with poise each time he’s out there, making the right decision. He’s mature as they come.”

Not only is Faber among the top rookies, he’s been playing as well as any defenseman in the entire league. As our Dom Luszczyszyn pointed out, Faber’s defensive rating of plus-3.7 leads the NHL, while his net rating of 12.1 is better than every rookie defenseman since 2008 besides Cale Makar’s 14.2 in 2019-20. Faber is right up there with Norris Trophy winners like Makar and Adam Fox.

“I was a big Charlie McAvoy fan, and those two (Fox, Makar), you strive to be like them,” Faber said. “You try to be like (Jared Spurgeon), (Jonas Brodin). All those guys. It’s so cool I get to play in the same league as them, play against them. It’s a dream come true.”

Faber plays more ice time (23:42) than Makar and Fox did as rookies. He’s not only in a shutdown role, but he’s among the Wild’s top penalty killers. With the injury to Spurgeon, Faber has recently taken over the top power-play unit, too.

“For me, it was a big thing that I wanted to be trusted in big moments,” Faber said, “and to be able to play at a high level consistently. Obviously I’ve been far from perfect and I know I have a lot of growth yet. But so far, I’m happy with the direction I’m trending. I’ve had bad games. I want to consistently get better. One of my goals was to be trusted and I have.”

Per #NHLStats, since time on ice began being tracked in 1997-98, #mnwild’s Brock Faber is only the 2nd rookie to record consecutive 30+-minute games (Atlanta’s Toby Enstrom in March 2008)
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) December 17, 2023

Faber called Thursday’s shootout win over Calgary one of his “bad” performances, despite logging a career-high 30:08. But a two-minute shift in overtime in which Faber recovered after turning the puck over illustrated some of the rookie’s strengths. He found a way to win a board battle and get the puck back to a teammate for a much-needed clear.

Asked if he needed an ice bath after the game, the always humble and accountable Faber said he needed to “ice my brain with some of my decisions.”

Coach John Hynes scoffed at that notion.

“He’s totally exhausted, he’s behind the net, he’s in a puck battle,” Hynes said. “And the puck is there. He’s got a second effort. Not only is it a second effort. He’s got the wherewithal to bump it back so we can gain possession of the puck and get a line change. You look at that one little component. We’ve been talking about not just his talent, but his mindset and mental maturity to handle the minutes and situations he’s in.”

Quinn Hughes, the Canucks’ star defenseman, remembered a 16-year-old Faber while playing at the United States National Team Development Program in Michigan. Like Faber, Hughes started at the USNTDP before playing college hockey (at Michigan) and then making the transition to the NHL.

“He looks unreal,” Hughes said. “He does it all. Defense, offense, runs their power play smoothly. He looks like a horse back there. He’s going to be a really good player. Already is.”

Faber, who impressed in his Stanley Cup playoffs debut last spring after the Frozen Four, dubbed the past offseason the most important summer of his life. He knew what kind of role he might have, what kind of players (Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews) he’d have to defend. So Faber worked on building up strength and speed as well as his eating and sleeping habits. Faber and other college defensemen say the biggest challenge as an NHL rookie is mental fatigue, and that’s where you can hit a wall more than physically.

“Absolutely, I’ve noticed that a ton,” Faber said. “There was a stretch there, that New York trip, Philly trip, three games where I was on the ice for the game-winning goal against. That’s just the mental battle. I’m still young. These guys have been in the league so long and are still playing at a high level. I’m young and fresh. It’s definitely harder mentally to stay consistent and get over those mistakes.”

When a Faber pinch led to the game winner against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden, the rookie took it hard and personally. He sat at his locker stall and, like a captain, owned up to it with the media, blaming the loss on himself even though before that mistake, he arguably was the team’s best defenseman in the game.

Those mistakes have been few and far between for Faber. He’s far from flashy but does all those subtle yet important things well. He kills plays quickly. He’s calm when going back for the puck, even with forecheckers bearing down on him.

“I’ve watched his patience,” said Vancouver Canucks coach Rick Tocchet, who has coached elite defensemen like Victor Hedman, Kris Letang and Hughes. “To me, it’s when they go back on pucks in pressure situations. I would say most D, not most but a lot, will get rid of it. He’s got that innate ability to look something off, hold it and make the better play. It’s hard to do.

“For me, it’s his patience and being under pressure. I love players that can play under pressure, and he’s got the pedigree to do that.”

Faber has a unique look to him, too, especially the glasses. There are times during pregame video sessions when Faber is still transitioning from his glasses to contacts. Teammates chuckle as they watch Faber squint as he puts the iPad three inches from his face. “We get a kick out of it,” Middleton said. “We’re nudging each other.”

Hynes said the staff, including strength and conditioning coach Matt Harder, monitor Faber’s workload and energy levels between games. Faber, who played between 22-26 minutes per game in college (a few times in the 30s), said he mostly just tries to hydrate, eat well and use the cold tub when needed to rejuvenate. Hynes went up to Harder on Friday morning, 12 hours after Faber played 30 minutes, and asked, “Should Fabes skate today?” They decided Faber could, as long as the team didn’t plan to practice Sunday before back-to-back games.

After playing two straight 30-plus minute games, Sunday is — finally — a day of rest for the remarkable rookie.

“Everyone wants to play those minutes,” Faber said. “I’m thankful that they play me that much. The fact they’ve had confidence in me since the day I got here is something I don’t take for granted.”

Front-office changes?

President and GM Bill Guerin has been around the team more the past few days, including at both Thursday’s and Saturday’s games. He hasn’t commented publicly since The Athletic reported Guerin was investigated for alleged verbal abuse of director of team operations Andrew Heydt.

There’s been no update on the search for a new assistant GM to replace Chris O’Hearn, who departed Tuesday when he and the team “mutually agreed to part ways” after a separate investigation. But there has been an increased presence of other members of the front-office staff, from retired forward Derek Stepan to director of player development Brad Bombardir and assistant director of player development Matt Hendricks. Mike Murray, AHL Iowa GM, has been at the past two games. It’s unclear if Guerin will hire another AGM, or if they’ll promote from within, but it would seem likely it would come from the outside.

But the report of the investigation of Guerin has been a big talker around the Wild dressing room, with some players unhappy that it’s looking more and more likely Heydt — a key support staff member for a decade — is leaving the organization. He wasn’t in the office last week and is currently missing his first road trip in his 10 years with the club.

“He’s the glue to our team,” said one veteran Wild player. “Guys are pissed.”

Brodin update

Brodin, out week to week with an upper-body injury, could receive some updates on his progress this week when he meets with his doctor, Hynes said. “We’ll probably have a little bit of clarity once he gets that hard cast off and what the process will be,” Hynes said.

Brodin, who got hurt Dec. 6 on a hit by Edmonton’s Evander Kane, has said he is out 4-6 weeks, with the hope his recovery is on the shorter end of the timeline.

Odds and ends

Mason Shaw, rehabbing his fourth ACL surgery, continues to make progress with AHL Iowa. But there’s still no immediate timeline for him to make his season debut; “a few checkpoints to still get through,” Murray said.

(Photo: Sergei Belski / USA Today)