Updates on the 4 Nations Faceoff.
The 4 Nations Faceoff starts next week, on Wednesday, February 12. Currently, three Vancouver Canucks and one head coach are part of each nation’s roster and coaching staff, though whether that’s the case by the time the puck drops has yet to be determined. Canucks captain Quinn Hughes has missed the last three games, and will not play tonight against the Toronto Maple Leafs, due to an oblique injury. It’s undetermined whether he will be a part of Team USA come the team’s first game on February 13.
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“He skated today pretty hard,” Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet said of Hughes’ participation in the tournament prior to Vancouver’s match against the Leafs. “The dialogue’s going to ramp up. We’ve got to figure this out.
“It’s not like we’ve got a few days. It’s hours before the decision’s got to be made.”
If Hughes is unable to suit up for Team USA come next Thursday, a replacement will have to be named in his stead. Right now, the team’s seventh defender is projected to be Noah Hanifin, though a potential fill-in for the Canucks captain could be the Ottawa Senators’ Jake Sanderson. In the event that Hughes misses the entire tournament, he will have gone nearly a month without playing, as his last bit of action was in the team’s January 31 matchup against the Dallas Stars.
Aside from Hughes, Elias Pettersson and Kevin Lankinen will also be heading to Montréal and Boston to play for their respective countries. Lankinen is projected to start for Team Finland, making it his first taste of in-game action since the Canucks’ 3–2 overtime loss against the Detroit Red Wings on February 2. Pettersson is projected to center Team Sweden’s second line alongside Filip Forsberg of the Nashville Predators and Lucas Raymond of Detroit. Tocchet will be assisting Jon Cooper of the Tampa Bay Lighting on Team Canada’s bench.
Another name that has sparked news regarding the 4 Nations Faceoff is Canadian icon Sidney Crosby, who is missing his second game in a row today by sitting out of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ match against the Philadelphia Flyers. It has been reported that the decision of whether to play in the tournament or not has been left up to Crosby. If Crosby chooses not to play, Winnipeg Jets forward Mark Schiefele is expected to take his place.
Hughes and Crosby are not the only players currently dealing with bumps and bruises who may end up missing the tournament. Newly-minted member of the Carolina Hurricanes, Mikko Rantanen, missed his team’s game against Utah Hockey Club today due to a lower-body injury. Some players have already opted out of the tournament due to health-related reasons. Alex Pietrangelo and William Karlsson of the Golden Knights will not be attending due to injury, as will former Canuck Jacob Markström of the New Jersey Devils. Dallas’ Miro Heiskanen and Toronto’s Jani Hakanpää will also be unavailable for Team Finland.
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