25th Anniversary Capsule: Justin Faulk

Drafted in the summer of 2010, Justin Faulk was in the Hurricanes' lineup by the fall of 2011.
Coming out of school as a highly-touted prospect, Faulk had set the record for the most points by a freshman defenseman at the University of Minnesota, guiding them to a national championship. A skilled defenseman, he would go on to become the anchor and arguably the most important member of the Carolina blue line until the 2018-19 season.

In 2012 he was named to the NHL All-Star YoungStars showcase, in what would be the first of his four trips to the league's All-Star weekend (2015, 2016, 2017). In 2014 he represented the United States at the Olympics and he was the youngest player on the team's roster.
At one point even named co-captain with Jordan Staal, Faulk produced 258 points during his eight seasons with the club, still holding the team record for most goals (85) by a defenseman. He became just the 10th defenseman in NHL history to register a natural hat trick on February 13, 2018.
Later in that same season, he was nominated for the King Clancy Memorial Trophy, given annually to the league's player that best exemplifies leadership abilities on and off the ice and gives back to their community.
But perhaps his biggest moment with the team came on April 4, 2019,
when he netted the eventual game-winning goal to send the Canes to the playoffs for the first time in a decade.