diff --git a/modules/@angular/router/src/apply_redirects.ts b/modules/@angular/router/src/apply_redirects.ts
index 694c051394..3b3257b995 100644
--- a/modules/@angular/router/src/apply_redirects.ts
+++ b/modules/@angular/router/src/apply_redirects.ts
@@ -211,7 +211,14 @@ class ApplyRedirects {
       injector: Injector, rawSegmentGroup: UrlSegmentGroup, route: Route,
       segments: UrlSegment[]): Observable<UrlSegmentGroup> {
     if (route.path === '**') {
-      return of (new UrlSegmentGroup(segments, {}));
+      if (route.loadChildren) {
+        return map.call(this.configLoader.load(injector, route.loadChildren), (r: any) => {
+          (<any>route)._loadedConfig = r;
+          return of (new UrlSegmentGroup(segments, {}));
+        });
+      } else {
+        return of (new UrlSegmentGroup(segments, {}));
+      }
 
     } else {
       const {matched, consumedSegments, lastChild} = match(rawSegmentGroup, route, segments);
diff --git a/modules/@angular/router/test/apply_redirects.spec.ts b/modules/@angular/router/test/apply_redirects.spec.ts
index ceae5f3cc2..a6ab23c4a4 100644
--- a/modules/@angular/router/test/apply_redirects.spec.ts
+++ b/modules/@angular/router/test/apply_redirects.spec.ts
@@ -292,6 +292,19 @@ describe('applyRedirects', () => {
               },
               (e) => { throw 'Should not reach'; });
     });
+
+    it('should load the configuration of a whilecard route', () => {
+      const loadedConfig = new LoadedRouterConfig(
+          [{path: '', component: ComponentB}], <any>'stubInjector', <any>'stubFactoryResolver');
+
+      const loader = {load: (injector: any, p: any) => of (loadedConfig)};
+
+      const config = [{path: '**', loadChildren: 'children'}];
+
+      applyRedirects(<any>'providedInjector', <any>loader, tree('xyz'), config).forEach(r => {
+        expect((<any>config[0])._loadedConfig).toBe(loadedConfig);
+      });
+    });
   });
 
   describe('empty paths', () => {