Faksa placed himself on the path that eventually led him to the NHL when he was 11 years old, deciding to leave his single mother and home in Opava, Czech Republic, to move 85 miles to Trinec.
Living in a dorm room with other young pro hopefuls, Faksa wanted an opportunity to join the HC Trinec developmental program, and it was there that he first began to develop the strong two-way game he debuted in the NHL during the 2015-16 season for the Dallas Stars.
Faksa placed himself on the path that eventually led him to the NHL when he was 11 years old, deciding to leave his single mother and home in Opava, Czech Republic, to move 85 miles to Trinec.
Living in a dorm room with other young pro hopefuls, Faksa wanted an opportunity to join the HC Trinec developmental program, and it was there that he first began to develop the strong two-way game he debuted in the NHL during the 2015-16 season for the Dallas Stars.
Playing primarily as a third-line center, Faksa played 45 games and spent most of his time checking the opponent's top line, killing penalties and taking key draws in his own end of the ice.
Faksa contributed offensively as well, scoring five goals and 12 points, and finishing with a plus-9 rating. Faksa kept it up during the Stanley Cup Playoffs, scoring three goals and five points with a plus-2 rating in 13 games.
The Stars selected him with the No. 13 pick in the 2012 NHL Draft, and he moved to North America at the age of 18 to play for Kitchener in the Ontario Hockey League.
With Kitchener in 2011-12, Faksa led OHL rookies with 29 goals, 38 assists and 67 points in 62 games and earned a spot in the Canadian Hockey League's Top Prospects Game, where he won the breakaway challenge in the skills competition.
Faksa finished second to Aaron Ekblad in the balloting for the Emms Family Award, given annually to the OHL's top rookie, and his stock rose to the point where he entered the draft ranked seventh among North American skaters.
Following a trade Jan. 9, 2014, Faksa finished his junior career with Sudbury and spent parts of three seasons with Texas of the American Hockey League before making his NHL debut against the Florida Panthers on Oct. 17, 2015.
Faksa further established himself by playing 80 games in 2016-17 and finishing fifth on the Stars with 21 assists in his first full NHL season.
He had an eventful two-game stretch in 2017-18; Faksa scored a natural hat trick Nov. 28, 2017, against the Vegas Golden Knights -- his first NHL hat trick -- then scored on his first NHL penalty shot two days later against the Chicago Blackhawks.
NOTES & TRANSACTIONS
- OHL All-Rookie Team (2012)
