David Spacek was already in position to get a look with the Minnesota Wild this season, and Brock Faber’s injury only sharpened that opportunity. With Faber headed to the IR after the Wild announced Tuesday that he suffered a fractured skull, the 2022 fifth-round pick slipped onto the Opening Night roster. How long he stays there is another question.
Even if Faber returns quickly, there should still be room for Spacek to push for minutes. Jared Spurgeon managed to stay healthy last season, but he missed major time in three of his previous five campaigns.
Zach Bogosian appeared in only 41 games last year. Spurgeon is 37, Bogosian is 35, and that usually doesn’t point to fewer bumps in the road.
For now, Spacek looks like the seventh defenseman. The bigger picture matters more, though, because next season could bring a real turning point for Minnesota’s blue line.
Spurgeon and Bogosian are both unrestricted free agents next summer. The Wild could keep both, especially in Spurgeon’s case as a franchise fixture and with Bogosian already having signed two deals in Minnesota, but retirement or a move elsewhere would open the door to a transition.
And Spacek may be the clearest internal answer. Ben Dexheimer, 24, is only beginning his AHL journey, while 2025 second-round pick Theodor Hallquisth still hasn’t locked down a full-time role in the Swedish Hockey League. That leaves Spacek as the most realistic option, maybe the only one, if Minnesota needs help next year.
He’ll still have to prove he belongs. There’s plenty to like in his game, but he dropped to the fifth round for a reason. David St-Louis of Elite Prospects wrote in a scouting report on April 12:
"Spacek always puts in a full effort every shift. He battles for the puck on the boards, switches from spot to spot in the defensive zone, always scanning the ice for threats, and gets his stick in passing lanes.... Ultimately, his average package of tools and mistake-prone nature may keep him from the NHL... but he could fill spots as an injury replacement and perform admirably for stretches."
The encouraging part is that he has already been producing in Des Moines. Iowa was tied for 28th in the AHL with 63 points and finished with a minus-47 goal differential, so Spacek’s share of the offense stands out. He posted 45.8% of the goal share, which was 13.0% better than the rest of the team and ranked 11th among 229 defensemen with at least 30 AHL games.
His scoring was strong too. Spacek put up 36 points in 59 games, good for 18th in the AHL in points per game among defensemen at 0.61. Compared with the rest of the Baby Wild, the gap was obvious: Carson Lambos, a first-round pick the same age as Spacek, finished with 19 points in 70 games.
That resume looks even better when you add what he has done for Czechia. Spacek was named a top-three player for his country in both of his World Junior Championship appearances, and he totaled nine points in 14 games while helping Czechia to a silver medal in 2021. He also had five points in 10 games as Czechia won the 2024 World Championships, and he made the Olympic squad, playing in all five games and recording a point.
If he can make the same kind of impression on John Hynes and the Wild that he has on Team Czechia, that would be the ideal outcome for both sides. Minnesota may eventually need to replace Spurgeon, Bogosian, or both, and doing that internally would be a lot easier than chasing a veteran on the open market. That becomes even more appealing with the Wild trying to sign Quinn Hughes for a $20 million cap hit and Spacek carrying an $850K price tag.
He also gave Minnesota something to build on in preseason. In his three games, the Wild out-chanced opponents 18-15 at 5-on-5.
That may not be enough to guarantee a spot on Opening Night, but the chance is coming. When Spacek gets his shot, he’ll need to make it count.
In Other News...
Wild Lose Brock Faber And Now Face A Huge Blue-Line Question
Brock Fabers preseason injury has quickly turned into one of the Wilds biggest early-season concerns after the young defenseman suffered a skull fracture and had successful surgery. Minnesota placed him on injured reserve, and the team has not offered any kind of timetable for his return, choosing instead to let medical guidance set the pace while the club waits out a situation that clearly goes well beyond hockey.
Bill Guerin said Faber is doing well after the procedure, but the message from the organization has been consistent: health comes first. For a team that was counting on Faber to anchor the blue line, the uncertainty now creates a significant hole on defense and leaves the Wild with a major question as they move deeper into camp and toward the start of the season. [Read more 🡒]
Wild Just Got An Early Reality Check On Charlie Stramel
Charlie Stramels first stop in pro hockey will come in Des Moines, where the Minnesota Wild sent the 21-year-old center to their AHL affiliate after giving him a look with the big club in preseason. A 2023 first-round pick, Stramel is still waiting on his first professional regular-season game, but the move sets him up for what should be an important early stretch with Iowa as he starts to translate his size and pedigree into the pro game.
For Minnesota, the assignment is also a reminder of how much roster pressure can shift in a hurry. The Wild are still dealing with the absence of defenseman Brock Faber, who suffered a skull fracture in preseason and had successful surgery, leaving his return timeline open-ended. With one promising young piece headed to the minors and one of their most important blueliners sidelined indefinitely, the Wilds early-season depth chart already has a different look than they likely expected. [Read more 🡒]
Bill Guerin Changed What The Wild Will Accept From Themselves
Since taking over as general manager in August 2019, Bill Guerin has steadily tried to reshape what the Wild expect from themselves. The message has not just been about talent, but about standards, and some of his biggest moves made that plain. Buying out longtime pillars Zach Parise and Ryan Suter was a jarring reset, but it also signaled a willingness to move past the old comfort zone in favor of cap flexibility and a cleaner organizational identity.
Guerin has carried that approach into the rest of the roster, leaning toward players who fit the culture he wants and making trades with an eye on better lineup balance. For the Wild, the impact goes beyond individual transactions. It is about accountability, competitiveness and a front office that has made clear it will not accept the same habits that once defined the team. [Read more 🡒]