Brock Faber’s 2025-26 season gave the Wild exactly what they needed from one of their top defensemen: a rebound, a heavier offensive punch, and the kind of shot-blocking work that never shows up in the flashiest highlight reels but absolutely matters.
After a disappointing 2024-25 campaign, Faber turned things around in a big way. He went from 29 points last season to 51 points in 2025-26, setting career highs with 15 goals and 36 assists.
His 51 points were also a personal best. That production helped steady a season that started slowly for both him and the team, especially during a rough October stretch.
Faber didn’t hide from that early slump. After a loss to the Utah Mammoth in October, he told the media, “I don’t know, it’s kind of hard to put your finger on it right now; there’s been all different situations, every game’s different.
It starts with keeping the puck out of our net. I’m a big part of that.
I gotta be better,”
Even as his physical game dipped - he finished with 33 hits, after 36 the season before and 65 in his rookie year - he still made life miserable for opponents around the net. Faber blocked 148 shots, second only to the 150 he had in his rookie season, and he led the Wild in that category. That defensive impact, paired with the offensive bounce-back, was enough to earn him an A for the regular season.
His playoff run only strengthened that case. Minnesota won a first-round series for the first time in 11 years, and Faber was right in the middle of it.
He appeared in all 11 postseason games and put up four goals and six assists for 10 points, good for fourth on the team behind Kirill Kaprizov, Quinn Hughes, and Matt Boldy. He also added 21 blocked shots, just one behind Jared Spurgeon’s team-high 22.
Bill Guerin pointed to Hughes as part of what helped unlock more from Faber, saying, “Faber. See, my brain wanders.
I thought Fabes, I thought Fabes, immediately got better. I don’t know exactly what it was, but it was almost like Fabes saw Quinn playing and he said, to me it was like, ‘oh wow, you can do that stuff as a defenseman.’
And he immediately became more assertive. Used his legs more.
Just got more involved. He wasn’t; he wasn’t just ok with moving the puck up and then waiting to defend.
He started going. And that was, that to me was a really positive effect that I think Quinn had on him…”
That postseason work earned Faber another A. He did plenty to keep the Wild in games, and at 23, there’s still room for him to grow.
For the season overall, Faber gets an A. He answered back after a down year, set new offensive highs, and remained one of Minnesota’s most valuable defensive pieces. With Hughes expected beside him again next season for a full year, the Wild have reason to think there’s still more coming.
In Other News...
Wild Just Made Another Defense Move Fans Will Want Explained
The Wild added another layer to their blue line mix by signing Roman Schmidt to a one-year, two-way contract, a low-risk move that gives the organization more size and depth to evaluate. The deal comes with a league-minimum NHL cap hit of $850,000 and a minor-league salary of $100,000, which fits the profile of a player the team can keep developing without much financial commitment.
Schmidt, a 23-year-old defenseman originally drafted by Tampa Bay, arrived in Minnesota after a busy season that included two trades before he landed with the Wild. He split last year between stops in the AHL, where he put up three assists in 48 games, and Iowa, and his appeal is tied less to offense than to the physical edge he brings on the back end. For a team still sorting out its defensive depth chart, the move is interesting not just for what Schmidt is now, but for what Minnesota thinks he might become. [Read more 🡒]
Wild Quietly Secured Important Right Side Blue Line Depth
The Wild made a quiet but useful bit of organizational housekeeping by keeping Roman Schmidt in the fold on a one-year contract extension. It is the kind of move that can get lost in the shuffle of a busy offseason, but for a team that has to keep its pipeline stocked on the right side of the blue line, those depth decisions matter just as much as the bigger roster headlines.
Schmidts deal helps preserve some continuity in the system and gives Minnesota another defenseman it can continue to develop within the AHL track, likely with Iowa in mind. Around the league, other names are already moving in different directions, with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins announcing new AHL contracts for a few players and Arthur Kaliyev drawing interest overseas, but the Wilds focus here was simpler: keep a useful piece of the organizational puzzle from slipping away. [Read more 🡒]
Wild May Have Another Tarasenko Style Swing If The Cap Cooperates
Bill Guerin has already shown he is willing to hunt the bargain bin when the fit makes sense, and the Vladimir Tarasenko pickup from Detroit was the latest reminder that Minnesota will kick the tires on a proven name if the price is right. With the Wild still looking to balance immediate help against the realities of the cap, another one of those opportunistic swings could be on the table if the right player becomes available.
The wrinkle is that any move of that size would not be simple, because Minnesota would likely need to move money out first before taking on another sizable contract. Anaheims own cap squeeze could create the opening, and if the Ducks decide they have to reshuffle their roster, the Wild could be positioned to pounce on a veteran winger who would give them a different look in the top six than Tarasenko did. [Read more 🡒]