BOSTON — The words sent a ripple through the press conference room at TD Garden.
While Mike Sullivan discussed the loss of Charlie McAvoy, his alternate captain, son-in-law and impact defender, the coach of the United States was asked whether an extra defenseman might be on his way to Boston ahead of the 4 Nations Face-Off championship against Canada (8 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, Disney+, SN, TVAS) on Thursday.
“Quinn Hughes is coming,” Sullivan said.
The Vancouver Canucks defenseman was on the original roster for the United States, named as one of the initial six players for the U.S. with McAvoy, but had to pull out of the tournament Feb. 9 with an undisclosed injury.
But with the news, now, that McAvoy will be unavailable to the U.S. for the final game, Sullivan revealed that Hughes was in transit to Boston. Hughes would only be able to join the roster should the team drop below six healthy defensemen; Thomas Harley was added to Canada’s roster Saturday after Shea Theodore was ruled out because of injury and Cale Makar was out because of illness.
Until that point, Hughes cannot practice with the team. Sullivan said they would take it a day at a time and see what “potential options might be available for us for the championship game and then we’ll make decisions accordingly from there.”
Hughes, the captain of the Canucks and brother of U.S. forward Jack Hughes, has not played since Jan. 31. He has 59 points (14 goals, 45 assists) in 47 games for the Canucks this season after an NHL career-high 92 points (17 goals, 75 assists) in 82 games last season, winning the Norris Trophy voted as the best defenseman in the NHL.
Even if Hughes can be added for the game Thursday, McAvoy remains a tremendous loss for the U.S. It was his hit on Connor McDavid on Saturday that, in addition to the three fights in the first nine seconds of the game, reverberated through the game and helped set the tone for a 3-1 win.
McAvoy, who plays for the Boston Bruins, was admitted to Massachusetts General Hospital on Monday where he had testing related to an upper-body injury sustained during the tournament; he is being evaluated by the Bruins head team physician, Peter Asnis.
When asked about the lag between the game Saturday and McAvoy’s admission to the hospital, Sullivan pushed back.
“You’re making an assumption about when the injury occurred,” Sullivan said, which could indicate that McAvoy was injured in the U.S.’s first game against Finland on Thursday. “All I will tell you is that he has been admitted to the hospital, he’s in very good care and when the timing is right, I’m sure the Bruins will handle it appropriately.”
McAvoy, Sullivan said, was disappointed to miss the chance to play for a championship with the U.S. in his home arena.
“This tournament means a lot to him,” Sullivan said. “He’s a very competitive guy. There’s a personal note with respect to my relationship with him and I’m disappointed for him because first and foremost he’s a great kid and he’s a terrific hockey player and I know this meant a lot to him.”
