Wild place Brock Faber, Filip Gustavsson on injured reserve
The Minnesota Wild have officially announced their final 23-man roster to begin the 2026-27 regular season, and neither Brock Faber nor Filip Gustavsson is on it.
In a media release on Monday, the Wild confirmed that they have placed Faber and Gustavsson on injured reserve to start the season. Faber, 24, has been in concussion protocol since taking a puck to the side of his head in a preseason game last Friday; Gustavsson, 28, is still recovering from offseason hip surgery and is not expected back until November.
Minnesota listed Faber on IR retroactive to Friday’s game, meaning he’ll miss the team’s season opener on Thursday but will be eligible to return (if he’s ready) in time for their home opener against the Boston Bruins on Oct. 3. Gustavsson’s absence will be more prolonged, meaning Calvin Pickard will begin the year backing up Jesper Wallstedt.
A 2026 U.S. Olympian and one of the top young defensemen in the sport, Faber racked up 15 goals and 51 points in 80 games with the Wild during the 2025-26 regular season and added four goals and 10 points in 11 playoff games. When he returns, the Maple Grove, Minn. product is expected to reclaim his spot alongside Quinn Hughes on the Wild’s No. 1 defense pairing.
Gustavsson, meanwhile, is entering the first season of his new five-year contract with the Wild, which carries a $6.8 million annual cap hit. As part of what now ranks among the league’s top goaltending tandems, Gustavsson has forged a strong bond with Wallstedt and will be tasked with taking on a significant chunk of the starts once he returns. The 6’2″ netminder went 28-15-6 with four shutouts and a .904 save percentage in 50 appearances with the Wild in the 2025-26 season, but he only featured in one of Minnesota’s 11 playoff contests.
With Faber momentarily sidelined, the Wild named the following seven defenders to their season-opening roster: Hughes, Jared Spurgeon, Jonas Brodin, Olli Maatta, Zach Bogosian, David Spacek, and Daemon Hunt. It remains to be seen which six will dress when Minnesota kicks off its season on the road against the Nashville Predators on Oct. 1.