For me, one of the brighter spots mid-way through the season has been Justin Faulk, offensively. The stats speak for themselves. Through 41 games, Faulk is on pace for a career high in goals (14), assists (34) and points (48.) He’s presently Top 20 in scoring amongst defensemen.
http://www.nhl.com/ice/playerstats.htm?season=20142015&gameType=2&team=&position=D&country=&status=&viewName=summary
Two things stand out when it comes to Faulk offensively this season versus seasons past. First, it seems like he’s making a concerted effort to establish his shot. As a draft prospect, one of the strengths to his game was a booming shot. For whatever reason, maybe confidence or coaching, it felt like he was holding back a bit. This season, he’s just letting it rip. Faulk is on pace for a career high in shots (218.) He’s presently Top 10 in shots by defensemen. Good things happen, when you get the puck on net. Case in point, Faulk picked up an assist last night by wristing it on Enroth, where Nash battled and banged home the rebound.
The second thing that stands out is how aggressive and confident Faulk appears with the puck on his stick. He looks like a different player moving the puck up ice. Thinking back to the Nashville game, I want to say on three different occasions Faulk single-handedly broke the puck out from low in the defensive zone, leaving forechecking Preds’ forwards in the dust.
Overall, it looks like Faulk has taken another step towards becoming a legit #1 defenseman. Next up is finding greater consistency in the defensive zone.
http://www.nhl.com/ice/playerstats.htm?season=20142015&gameType=2&team=&position=D&country=&status=&viewName=summary
Two things stand out when it comes to Faulk offensively this season versus seasons past. First, it seems like he’s making a concerted effort to establish his shot. As a draft prospect, one of the strengths to his game was a booming shot. For whatever reason, maybe confidence or coaching, it felt like he was holding back a bit. This season, he’s just letting it rip. Faulk is on pace for a career high in shots (218.) He’s presently Top 10 in shots by defensemen. Good things happen, when you get the puck on net. Case in point, Faulk picked up an assist last night by wristing it on Enroth, where Nash battled and banged home the rebound.
The second thing that stands out is how aggressive and confident Faulk appears with the puck on his stick. He looks like a different player moving the puck up ice. Thinking back to the Nashville game, I want to say on three different occasions Faulk single-handedly broke the puck out from low in the defensive zone, leaving forechecking Preds’ forwards in the dust.
Overall, it looks like Faulk has taken another step towards becoming a legit #1 defenseman. Next up is finding greater consistency in the defensive zone.
