Does Nick Suzuki Have Another Level to Rise To?

Montreal Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki was left off the 4 Nations team. Yes, it was a stacked team and he’s not quite a point-per-game player so it was completely understandable and Suzuki took it in stride. But he has time to get invited to the Olympics and I think he needs to do a few things to put himself in a better position to do so.

Dylan Larkin talked about having more players play in the World Championships at some point during the 4 Nations. It makes sense and last year Suzuki declined to play. I’m not criticizing him for his decision but I’m saying that if he’s asked this year he should play. A big World Championship series this year is one way to open Hockey Canada’s eyes regarding next year’s Olympics. 

Another aspect of Suzuki’s game that has dropped off is his goal-scoring. I feel like if he was scoring more goals, even as a center, then he would set himself apart from some of the others. If the Canadiens have a super line with Cole Caufield and Juraj Slafkovsky intact, then the captain can shoot more than 3.7 times per game. Caufield will always find his shots but now there is a net-front presence and shooting creates rebounds and scoring chances for his linemates and then there are chances on the power play too.

Suzuki is a selfless player. Becoming slightly more selfish could benefit the team too. I’ve seen this happen in other players and I think Suzuki could rise to an 85-90 point player when the team continues to get better.