Charlie McAvoy facing uncertain status for 4 Nations Face-Off championship game
Team USA’s backend is already down a game-changing talent with Quinn Hughes unavailable for the 4 Nations Face-Off, and Thursday’s championship game between the United States and Canada may come with another loss on the backend, with Charlie McAvoy potentially unavailable for the club.
McAvoy, who had already been ruled out for Monday’s round-robin play finale against Team Sweden (though it was never specified as to why), is dealing with an upper-body injury that has put his status for Thursday’s game in legitimate doubt, sources have told 98.5 The Sports Hub.
Given the importance of the game and the rivalry between the countries, as well as the role played by McAvoy, the obvious hope is that McAvoy will be good to go for the Americans. But as of Monday afternoon, the source termed the ailment as one that’s left McAvoy “not looking good for Thursday.”
Deployed for over 19 minutes in last Saturday’s win over Team Canada, McAvoy’s night was headlined by a defense-leading five hits, including a pair of big hits on Canada’s Connor McDavid.
It’s unclear as to whether or not McAvoy suffered the injury in the game against Canada or on one of the hits, or if it’s a lingering issue dating back to Team USA’s win over Finland (which saw McAvoy cross-checked into the goal by Joel Armia) or even McAvoy’s pre-break run with the Black and Gold.
With McAvoy unavailable, the Americans will throw Ottawa’s Jake Sanderson (35 points in 55 games this season) into action in what will be his first appearance of the tournament, while McAvoy’s departure will also almost certainly lead to an increased role for Rangers defenseman and fellow right-shot blue liner Adam Fox after Fox logged a defense-low 13:44 last Saturday.
Team USA and Team Canada will play for the championship with a 8 p.m. head-to-head Thursday night at TD Garden.
