Faulk lists his mother as the biggest influence on his hockey career, and well he should. It was Faulk's mother, Gail King, who first took him skating when he was 3, and who decided to take him back for another try a few months later after Justin failed so miserably during the initial attempt that she wound up carrying him around the ice.
Now Faulk is considered one of the most skilled skating defensemen in the game, a detail-oriented workhorse who plays reliably in his own zone and is a creative offensive force, particularly on the power play.
Faulk lists his mother as the biggest influence on his hockey career, and well he should. It was Faulk's mother, Gail King, who first took him skating when he was 3, and who decided to take him back for another try a few months later after Justin failed so miserably during the initial attempt that she wound up carrying him around the ice.
Now Faulk is considered one of the most skilled skating defensemen in the game, a detail-oriented workhorse who plays reliably in his own zone and is a creative offensive force, particularly on the power play.
Faulk earned a spot on the NHL's All-Rookie team in 2011-12 after leading the Carolina Hurricanes in average ice time per game (22:51), ranking first among rookie defensemen in power-play goals (five), tying for first among rookie defensemen in total goals (eight) and finishing second among rookies in points (22).
A second-round pick (No. 37) by the Hurricanes in the 2010 NHL Draft, Faulk continued to gain notice in 2012-13 when he was named the team's most valuable player by the Carolina chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers Association. The honor came following a season in which Faulk played 38 games but had 15 points and ranked first among Hurricanes defensemen in takeaways (24), third in hits (63) and fourth in blocked shots (47).
In 2014-15, Faulk participated in his first NHL All-Star Game and was again named Hurricanes MVP after he scored 15 goals with a team-high 34 assists. The next season, Faulk became the first player in NHL history to score his first 12 goals of the season on the power play.
A native of South St. Paul, Minn., Faulk honed his skills in the United States National Team Development Program and spent the 2010-11 season playing for the University of Minnesota-Duluth, which won the national championship.
Faulk has represented the United States in four international events, including the 2010 World Under-18 Championship, where the U.S. won gold, and the 2011 World Junior Championship, where the U.S. won bronze. He also played at the 2012, 2013 and 2014 World Championships and made his Olympic debut at the 2014 Games in Sochi.
