The price was steep, but getting Faulk might pay off for the Red Wings
The Detroit Red Wings made one of the biggest splashes at the NHL Trade Deadline, acquiring defenseman Justin Faulk from the St. Louis Blues.
Faulk joined a team that’s hungry to end a decade-long playoff drought. The Red Wings have managed to stay up with the best in the Atlantic Division, but they need more experience if they want to be a serious threat in the playoffs.
Still, it came at a hefty cost. The Wings traded a first- and a third-round draft pick in 2026, as well as prospect Dmitri Buchelnikov and veteran Justin Holl. Faulk is in the second-to-last year of a contract with a $6.5 million cap hit. So trading off future pieces for a player in their 30s at an expensive salary can be deemed risky.
But former NHLers Wojtek Wolski and Carter Hutton seem positive about the deal, having discussed it during Daily Faceoff’s trade deadline show on Friday:
Wojtek Wolski: “It’s a pretty steep price, I think, for a player that’s probably going to be their second line defense, number three, number four. If something happens, you need a little bit of backup. You never know what happens in the playoffs down the stretch if somebody gets hurt. And if he has a little bit of revival, going to a team that is excited to have him and maybe he puts up some bigger numbers.
Carter Hutton: “The Wings are an interesting team, too, because they’re also built pretty well for the future here. You didn’t want to leverage your whole future into this trade deadline and make a big something that’s going to impact you moving forward.
“But Justin Faulk is kind of one of those perimeter pieces. He’s going to generate a little bit more offensively. It doesn’t necessarily help their 5-on-5 scoring, but Mo Sider is their leading D point-getter with seven goals. I think adding Faulk to that power play and a little bit of the veteran leadership is important in this room.”
Wojtek Wolski thinks the Justin Faulk trade was a tidy bit of business for the Detroit Red Wings! #NHL #Blues #RedWings #TradeDeadline