Wild defenseman Brock Faber on Tuesday was named one of three finalists for the Calder Trophy, which is awarded annually to the NHL’s rookie of the year.

The former Gophers star out of Maple Grove joins Chicago center Connor Bedard and New Jersey defenseman Luke Hughes as finalists for the award, which will be announced at the NHL Awards show scheduled for June 27 in Las Vegas.

Faber, 21, finished the season with eight goals and 47 points, 150 blocked shots and averaged a team-high 24:58 of time on ice. Faber played on both special teams units, ultimately captaining the top group, and finished with a plus/minus ratio of minus-1.

He also became one of the two Wild rookies to play in all 82 games — center Marco Rossi was the other — despite playing the last two months with fractured ribs.

“That’s the type of kid he is,” general manager Bill Guerin said April 19, a day after the Wild’s season ended with a 4-3 loss to Seattle. “He never complained, never said ‘boo.’ He could have been out of the lineup a number of times and he just wasn’t.”

Faber led all NHL rookies on time on ice and blocked shots, and tied with Bedard for most assists with 39. Only Bedard had more points (61). And according to NHL Stats, he became the only NHL rookie to skate 30-plus minutes in five games in a season since the league began tracking the stat in 1997-98.

Faber is the second Wild player to be named a Calder finalist. Teammate Kirill Kaprizov won the award after the 2020-21 season.

“I wouldn’t say I surprised myself,” Faber said at the team’s final news conference. “I don’t know if I was expecting to play on the power play, but I’m obviously very hard on myself and I know where my game should be and where I want to be.

“I think there were lots of ups and downs for me individually and I think I have a lot more to give yet. But you know, overall individually, I’m not disappointed by the year I’d say.”

CALDER FINALISTS

The NHL announced its finalists for the Calder Memorial Trophy, given annually to the league’s top rookie. They are Chicago center Connor Bedard, Wild defenseman Brock Faber and New Jersey defenseman Luke Hughes.

Player     GP  G   A    Pts  +/-

Bedard    68   22  39   61  -44

Faber      82   8    39   47   -1

Hughes   82   9    38  47  -25