Article: What Are the Wild’s Ideal Defensive Pairings When Brodin Returns?

[Neil Urbanski]

View full article

[Imyourhuckleberry]

Hopefully they can keep it together while Kaprizov and Hartman are sidelined, and make a strong run at the end of the season with a healthy squad entering the playoffs.

For next season though, assuming no trades, maybe they go with:

Faber/Buium

Brodin/Jiricek

Middleton/Spurgeon

Bogo as 7th D, with Lambos and Spacek available as necessary from AHL.

Given that Buium could be ready at end of this season, I might trade Chisholm out this year to add forward talent for the hopeful playoff run.

[OldDutchChip]

Brodin is unquestionably our best Defender

My ideal pairing for as soon as it can materialize-

brodin/jiri

Faber/midds

 Spurge/bogo

 Once zeev arrives, and if he can play immediately, then put him w midds and dump fabrr to third pair w bogo

id consider one, if not both of faber and spurge, as trade baits

[Enforceror]

44 minutes ago, OldDutchChip said:

Brodin is unquestionably our best Defender

My ideal pairing for as soon as it can materialize-

brodin/jiri

Faber/midds

 Spurge/bogo

 Once zeev arrives, and if he can play immediately, then put him w midds and dump fabrr to third pair w bogo

id consider one, if not both of faber and spurge, as trade baits

Really? I'm curious why you think that as my opinion is drastically different from that. I'm always open to someone changing my mind but I think Faber will quickly become our best defender.

[Sam]

2 hours ago, Imyourhuckleberry said:

Hopefully they can keep it together while Kaprizov and Hartman are sidelined, and make a strong run at the end of the season with a healthy squad entering the playoffs.

For next season though, assuming no trades, maybe they go with:

Faber/Buium

Brodin/Jiricek

Middleton/Spurgeon

Bogo as 7th D, with Lambos and Spacek available as necessary from AHL.

Given that Buium could be ready at end of this season, I might trade Chisholm out this year to add forward talent for the hopeful playoff run.

It sounds like you have pretty high expectations for Buium if you have him at the first pairing. But it sounds like this Wheeler guy does too. I hope he turns out and his skill translates to the NHL.

[Burnt Toast]

2 hours ago, OldDutchChip said:

faber and spurge, as trade baits

Brock 4 Brock? Me thinks Not. 

[Burnt Toast]

The Wild’s D core is getting younger, faster, and more skilled. I think you could add taller and hopefully stronger is on the horizon. 

[OldDutchChip]

2 hours ago, Enforceror said:

Really? I'm curious why you think that as my opinion is drastically different from that. I'm always open to someone changing my mind but I think Faber will quickly become our best defender.

Faber is not physical enough and not fast enough to be given the distinction of being the best defender on the team. on top of that his production has taken a dip and will continue to do so, once the promised phenom - zeev - arrives. this is where a smart GM comes in and evaluates the situation without any bias and acts. We know that Zeev will replace Faber on food chain as early as next year. Brodin is still plays as though he is 22 (he is our Nick L).  Jiri will be top 4 and Midds will have to be too. This will drive Faber value down (i suppose you can add Spurge here - but i think he stays - and gets his number retired and spend time with his 6 kids). So Faber is your asset. You dangle him for Elias. 

[OldDutchChip]

8 minutes ago, Burnt Toast said:

Brock 4 Brock? Me thinks Not. 

no thank you. Brock for Elias. 

[mnhockeyfan03]

I would look at trading both Faber and Spurgeon.  We overpaid for Faber and he is not strong enough to clear out the front of the net.  He is a $5mm a year guy but Billy jumped the gun again last year like he did with Hartman, Foligno and Zuccarello.  We need forward help as we are deep at D and he can net a good player back.  He is to small. We need trees.  Same with Spurgeon but he just needs to be dumped for whatever we can get to use his salary on a free agent.  Brodin, Middleton, jiricek, and Zeev should be the core and get 2 other big right handed guys who can skate to fill out the rest. People won’t like this but do we want to win or continue to suck.  We also need 3-4 guys to be moved for forwards to make this team a contender.  The goal should be the CUP not the playoffs or a first round win. Demand more.  We have been mediocre in the middle for 20 years

[Burnt Toast]

1 hour ago, OldDutchChip said:

So Faber is your asset.

I agree. He’s almost a half point per game defenseman. He’s 6’1” and already over 200 lbs as a 22 year old. He’s got nice burst/recovery speed and excellent hockey instincts. Remember all this packaged into a player still on his ELC. Do you really want to trade him? I’d rather build around him. He’s only going to get better. 

Edited February 6 by Burnt Toast
Missed word

[mnhockeyfan03]

1 minute ago, Burnt Toast said:

I agree. He’s almost a half point per game defenseman. He’s 6’1” and already over 200 lbs as a 22 year old. He’s got nice burst/recovery speed and excellent hockey instincts. Remember all this packaged into a player still on his ELC. Do you really want to him? I’d rather build around him. He’s only going to get better. 

You do understand next year Faber is set to make 8.5mm and will eat half of our $15mm cap penalty we are paying this year for a guy that should only be making 4-5mm.  Trade him for a good forward

[Burnt Toast]

44 minutes ago, mnhockeyfan03 said:

Billy jumped the gun again

I think Brock would be commanding an even bigger contract if Wild Management hadn’t locked him up early. His trajectory as a top pairing defender is right on schedule. 

[Burnt Toast]

7 minutes ago, mnhockeyfan03 said:

Faber is set to make 8.5mm

He’s worth every penny. He’s a top pairing defender, arguably our best overall. A guy like that is going to cost $12 M in a couple of years. Nothing is for certain but he’s got every indication of a fantastic investment. 

[SkolWild73]

I agree with Burnt toast.  Really can’t believe people are hating on Faber and want to get rid of him already.  He is 22 and only on his second full season.  Yes his point production is down a bit from last year, 6 goals and 15 assists in 50 games this year compared to 8 and 39 in 82 last year, but he is a plus 10 this year compared to a minus 1 last year.  Maybe the 8.5 mill is an overpay next year, but if he continues to grow as player I think he will be underpaid in the middle and back half of his contract.  

[mnhockeyfan03]

Understand your guys opinion but I don’t think he is top pair guy or even a second pair guy.  I think Billy overpaid just watch him against the big west teams.  He gets pushed around and is scared of contact when he has the puck.  He is to small for what we need and we need forwards and his contract could be used to bring us a great center. To many people are homers.  We need to beef up this team and be smart with how we spend money.  Faber, Spurgeon, Boldy, Zuccarello, nojo, trenin, Hartman, Foligno, Rossi as well (unless he wants to do a 2yr bridge at 4-5mm), all should be gone to make this a better team.  Just stating the facts.  The team is a mess and Billy created it. 

[SkolWild73]

8 hours ago, mnhockeyfan03 said:

Understand your guys opinion but I don’t think he is top pair guy or even a second pair guy.  I think Billy overpaid just watch him against the big west teams.  He gets pushed around and is scared of contact when he has the puck.  He is to small for what we need and we need forwards and his contract could be used to bring us a great center. To many people are homers.  We need to beef up this team and be smart with how we spend money.  Faber, Spurgeon, Boldy, Zuccarello, nojo, trenin, Hartman, Foligno, Rossi as well (unless he wants to do a 2yr bridge at 4-5mm), all should be gone to make this a better team.  Just stating the facts.  The team is a mess and Billy created it. 

So you want to get rid of 9 players, including our 3 best young players to make us a better team?  Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but you say you are saying facts.  Not sure where the facts are in your post.

[mnhockeyfan03]

32 minutes ago, SkolWild73 said:

So you want to get rid of 9 players, including our 3 best young players to make us a better team?  Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but you say you are saying facts.  Not sure where the facts are in your post.

All these players should be made available in a trade if it makes the team better.  We are going no where with the players I listed. 

[SkolWild73]

I am interested to hear from those of you who think Faber is to small and over paid, who you think are the best defensemen in the NHL?   Based on NHL.com, the top defensemen for 2024/25 are:

• Cale Makar: 26, 6'0",187, 9 mil/year through 2027. 
• Quinn Hughes: 25, 5'10", 180, 7.85 mil through 2027
• Victor Hedman: 34, 6'7", 245, 8 mil through 2026
• Roman Josi: 34, 6'1", 201, 9.059 mil through 2028
• Miro Heiskanen: 25, 6'2", 197, 8.45 mil through 2029
• Gustav Forsling: 28, 6'1", 199, 5.75 mil through 2032
• Charlie McAvoy: 27, 6'1", 213, 9.5 mil through 2030
• Adam Fox: 26, 5'11", 180, 9.5 mil through 2029
• Evan Bouchard: 25, 6'3, 192, 3.9 mil through 2025
• Devan Towes: 30, 6'1", 191, 7.25 mil through 2031
• Brock Faber: 22, 6'1", 200, 8.5 mil starting 2025-2033

 

Although I am not saying that Faber will be as good as Makar or Hughes, those two will likely sign contracts after 2027 for 12 mil+ per year, and I would guess Bouchard will be signing for close to 11 mil next year if not more.  Fox and Heiskanen will sign new deals in 4 years and will probably be getting at least 11or 12 mil.  Besides Hedman and I suppose McAvoy, none of these guys are bigger than Faber, who could easily put on another ten pounds as he gets older.

NHL.com also has a good article of who they think are the top young defenseman in the NHL who have a chance of cracking the top ten defenseman in 3 years and Faber is on that list.

Top young defensemen entering this season discussed by NHL.com | NHL.com

Based on Faber's size, it doesn't look to me that he is too small.  An argument could be made that he needs to learn to use his size more, but remember, he is only 22 and in his second full season.  Give him time.  If he continues to develop, he could easily be a top 20 D-Man and will be well worth his contract in a couple of years and probably underpaid.

 

[OldDutchChip]

11 hours ago, Burnt Toast said:

I agree. He’s almost a half point per game defenseman. He’s 6’1” and already over 200 lbs as a 22 year old. He’s got nice burst/recovery speed and excellent hockey instincts. Remember all this packaged into a player still on his ELC. Do you really want to trade him? I’d rather build around him. He’s only going to get better. 

starting next year his cap hit is 8.5. you have jiricek and middleton as your heavies. then spurge brodin and buium. you use suter 2.0 to bring in a big fish. hence brock faber for elias p. 

[OldDutchChip]

11 hours ago, Burnt Toast said:

He’s worth every penny. He’s a top pairing defender, arguably our best overall. A guy like that is going to cost $12 M in a couple of years. Nothing is for certain but he’s got every indication of a fantastic investment. 

you can hang on to mediocracy - that's what we been doing for the last 30 years - or be smart and take risks

faber is not irreplaceable, and he will likely have the same impact as Suter o the ice (you can decide if that was good or not)

 

[OldDutchChip]

31 minutes ago, SkolWild73 said:

I am interested to hear from those of you who think Faber is to small and over paid, who you think are the best defensemen in the NHL?   Based on NHL.com, the top defensemen for 2024/25 are:

• Cale Makar: 26, 6'0",187, 9 mil/year through 2027. 
• Quinn Hughes: 25, 5'10", 180, 7.85 mil through 2027
• Victor Hedman: 34, 6'7", 245, 8 mil through 2026
• Roman Josi: 34, 6'1", 201, 9.059 mil through 2028
• Miro Heiskanen: 25, 6'2", 197, 8.45 mil through 2029
• Gustav Forsling: 28, 6'1", 199, 5.75 mil through 2032
• Charlie McAvoy: 27, 6'1", 213, 9.5 mil through 2030
• Adam Fox: 26, 5'11", 180, 9.5 mil through 2029
• Evan Bouchard: 25, 6'3, 192, 3.9 mil through 2025
• Devan Towes: 30, 6'1", 191, 7.25 mil through 2031
• Brock Faber: 22, 6'1", 200, 8.5 mil starting 2025-2033

 

Although I am not saying that Faber will be as good as Makar or Hughes, those two will likely sign contracts after 2027 for 12 mil+ per year, and I would guess Bouchard will be signing for close to 11 mil next year if not more.  Fox and Heiskanen will sign new deals in 4 years and will probably be getting at least 11or 12 mil.  Besides Hedman and I suppose McAvoy, none of these guys are bigger than Faber, who could easily put on another ten pounds as he gets older.

NHL.com also has a good article of who they think are the top young defenseman in the NHL who have a chance of cracking the top ten defenseman in 3 years and Faber is on that list.

Top young defensemen entering this season discussed by NHL.com | NHL.com

Based on Faber's size, it doesn't look to me that he is too small.  An argument could be made that he needs to learn to use his size more, but remember, he is only 22 and in his second full season.  Give him time.  If he continues to develop, he could easily be a top 20 D-Man and will be well worth his contract in a couple of years and probably underpaid.

 

the rest of the list is unquestionably THE top defenders on their team. faber isn't and won't be next year or any other time if all the whispers about zeev is true and jiricek comes into his own. 

the point i am making is it's smart to figure out if you want to capitalize on Faber's peak value or not. if not - then you will be fine - he will be your 2nd/3rd D with 40 pts ceiling. 

or you want to see if you can get an offensive dynamo to pair with Kaprizov? i'd wager that's the way to go. 

again you have Zeev, Brodin, Midds and Jiricek as that core. You also likely to have at least ONE D from AHL finally develop into something. Now is the time to parlay some of that depth into what is missing. and we know what's missing. we have seen it play out on the ice with Kaprizov. You need offense. And Faber can get you that so i'd ship him out in the off season.

[SkolWild73]

5 minutes ago, OldDutchChip said:

the rest of the list is unquestionably THE top defenders on their team. faber isn't and won't be next year or any other time if all the whispers about zeev is true and jiricek comes into his own. 

the point i am making is it's smart to figure out if you want to capitalize on Faber's peak value or not. if not - then you will be fine - he will be your 2nd/3rd D with 40 pts ceiling. 

or you want to see if you can get an offensive dynamo to pair with Kaprizov? i'd wager that's the way to go. 

again you have Zeev, Brodin, Midds and Jiricek as that core. You also likely to have at least ONE D from AHL finally develop into something. Now is the time to parlay some of that depth into what is missing. and we know what's missing. we have seen it play out on the ice with Kaprizov. You need offense. And Faber can get you that so i'd ship him out in the off season.

Agreed that they are the top defenseman on their team, but they are all 25 years or older while Faber is only 22.  He had 47 points last year as a rookie, so unless that turns out to be his best year, I do not see 40 points being his ceiling.  Granted he is only on pace for 34 points this year, but I would like to bet on his potential.  
 

I would agree with you if he was 25 or 26 and his best year was when he was 21, but I think it is too big of a gamble to trade him this early. Time will tell I suppose.

[Burnt Toast]

25 minutes ago, OldDutchChip said:

be smart and take risks

100% agree that this is an important step in a SC push. Vegas & Florida are recent examples. JE & MT were great additions at just the right moment. My opinion is that we’re a couple of seasons away. The Wild chose to rebuild through the draft. Until we see how those top picks fit in we don’t have the depth to be a top contender. I hate waiting. I waited 5 years for KK, it’s almost 5 years to see some long lasting results from the Granlund trade. But the team has been slowly getting better. I’m confident that when the Wild are one big trade away from truly contending they’ll pull the trigger. 

[M_Nels]

13 hours ago, OldDutchChip said:

We know that Zeev will replace Faber on food chain as early as next year. Brodin is still plays as though he is 22 (he is our Nick L).  Jiri will be top 4 and Midds will have to be too. This will drive Faber value down (i suppose you can add Spurge here - but i think he stays - and gets his number retired and spend time with his 6 kids). So Faber is your asset. You dangle him for Elias. 

Zeev is left-handed first of all. I love me some Brods and think he's one of the most underrated d-men in the league but he's getting older and injuries are starting to catch up with him, he's missed 20 games each of the last 2 seasons.

We've got nobody in Iowa that fits the bill of a tall, heavy, good skating RHD and those guys don't just spring up on the market especially for 8.5m. Faber is a franchise guy and is only 22.