ST PAUL, MINNESOTA - MAY 09: Brock Faber #7 of the Minnesota Wild celebrates with his teammates after scoring a goal on MacKenzie Blackwood #39 of the Colorado Avalanche during the second period in Game Three of the Second Round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Grand Casino Arena on May 09, 2026 in St Paul, Minnesota. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images) Getty
DENVER, COLORADO - MAY 13: Nick Foligno #71 of the Minnesota Wild celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal on MacKenzie Blackwood #39 of the Colorado Avalanche during the first period in Game Five of the Second Round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Ball Arena on May 13, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images) Getty
The Minnesota Wild are off to a 10-3-3 record to begin the year, and things are looking good. That impressive record comes even without Brock Faber.
Forward Kirill Kaprizov is off to a blazing beginning, leading the league in goals with 15. It's a 3-goal lead, as Leon Draisaitl and Artturi Lehkonen sit in second with 12 each. Kaprizov's scoring has been a large part of the Wild's hot start, and he's pacing for a career-best season.
Faber suffered a very scary injury towards the end of the preseason in an exhibition against the Stars. He took a puck to the side of the head, resulting in a fractured skull. After missing about a month, Faber's return is imminent.
GettyST PAUL, MINNESOTA – MAY 09: Brock Faber #7 of the Minnesota Wild celebrates with his teammates after scoring a goal on MacKenzie Blackwood #39 of the Colorado Avalanche during the second period in Game Three of the Second Round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Grand Casino Arena on May 09, 2026 in St Paul, Minnesota. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images)
Michael Russo of The Athletic was on the report .
" I chatted with John Hynes on Tuesday after his availability, and while he said he still doesn't have a timeline for Brock Faber's return, he also indicated it won't be far, far off in the distance.
He said Faber has essentially been cleared to return to play and now it's just upping his fitness on a daily basis because he went five weeks without working out or being on the ice.
He's in the gym daily now and skating, so it'll be up to Faber and the strength coaches as to how he continues to ramp up and when it's decided he's ready to really up things by skating with the team ."
It will likely be a handful of games until Faber is back in action. Still, this news paints a clear timeline for Faber's return.
GettyDENVER, COLORADO – MAY 13: Nick Foligno #71 of the Minnesota Wild celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal on MacKenzie Blackwood #39 of the Colorado Avalanche during the first period in Game Five of the Second Round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Ball Arena on May 13, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
Russo further reported in the same piece about the Foligno brothers, who have also both been out of action for almost a month, akin to Brock Faber.
" As for Nick and Marcus Foligno, Hynes said he'll have a better idea how they're doing once the team returns to Minnesota on Wednesday. Both continue to skate on their own. But he anticipates that if they don't play this weekend against San Jose and Tampa Bay — I'm not sure how they would since they haven't been practicing and haven't played since Oct. 6 and 8, respectively — Hynes does anticipate they'll at least travel on the upcoming trip to Montreal, Toronto and Boston."
The Wild are getting healthy, and it's a great thing to see. Even in a short-handed fashion, they've been making lemonade. Now, with major contributors soon to return, we may finally be able to see the fully realized vision of the 2026 Wild on the ice in short order.
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