Montreal Canadiens Players Who Deserve a Spot in the 4 Nations Tournament
On July 4, NHL.com released a list of projected players who they believe will comprise the roster at the 4 Nations Tournament. Montreal forward Cole Caufield was among the 13 attackers assumed to make up the Team USA roster.
Caufield deserves a spot on Team USA’s depth chart, but he is so far the only Hab projected to make the tournament. There are a few others, however, who merit a shot at representing their home nation.
Nick Suzuki
The Canadiens captain was the forefront producer last year for the club. His All-Star-worthy campaign saw him tally 33 goals and 77 points in 82 games. Having established himself as Montreal’s top center, he piloted a first line along with Caufield and Juraj Slafkovský.
Suzuki has represented Team Canada in the past: The 2019 World Junior Championship, the Men’s Under-18 Team in 2016, and so on. An invitation was extended to the 24-year-old to compete with Canada at the IIHF World Championship back in April, but the centreman turned it down much to the dismay of Canadiens fans. There was no definitive reason behind his absence, such as him being too tired to compete after a third-straight 82-game season.
Suzuki’s rejection may be why NHL.com did not pick him to play for Canada. Suzuki is dynamic enough to play the wing, meaning that the plethora of talented Canadian centers–such as Connor McDavid, Sidney Crosby— might knock him down the depth chart. He definitely deserves a chance after what he has demonstrated in terms of play over the past few seasons.
Samuel Montembeault
Not to sound mean, but this has more to do with the lack of big-name Canadian goaltenders from years past than Montembeault’s skill. Don’t get the words twisted, Montembeault has shown he can hold his own between the pipes. Although, inconsistent at times, the Becancour, Que.-born netminder came up clutch plenty of times last season, lending to the argument that he should be the Habs’ definitive starting goalie.
Like Suzuki, Montembeault informed Team Canada that he would not play in the 2024 IIHF World Championship. This is despite the 2023 performance wherein he was a part of the gold medal-winning team, going 6-1 with a .939 save percentage and a 1.42 goals-against average.
The camp rejection may hurt Montembeault’s candidacy for the 4 Nations Tournament, but so does the emergence of Adin Hill, Jordan Binnington and Stuart Skinner when it comes to playing in games with mounds of pressure– the NHL playoffs.
Joel Armia
Let’s address the obvious, it’s improbable that Joel Armia plays for the Finnish team at the 4 Nations Tournament, but for the fun of it, let’s entertain the thought.
Armia has represented Finland before, many times. He was a part of the U-17, U-18 and U-20 teams and participated at the IIHF World Championships in 2021 and 2022. The 31-year-old forward has 11 points in the 18 games he has played in the World Championships. Last season with the Canadiens, he registered 17 goals and 25 points in 66 games.
It’s unlikely that Armia will get a spot with Finland, especially considering the bulk of Finnish studs like Sebastian Aho and Aleksander Barkov. His tenure, however, does weigh in his favor when it comes to the odds of representing his home nation in February 2025.