Charlie McAvoy Ruled Out of the 4 Nations Tournament

Ahead of the 4 Nations Faceoff Final on Thursday against Canada, the Boston Bruins announced on Tuesday that defenseman Charlie McAvoy will be out of the rest of the tournament.

The #NHLBruins have issued the following update on Charlie McAvoy.

?: https://t.co/D21FeA5JUW pic.twitter.com/ZzbqN9wIHC

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) February 18, 2025

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In a statement released Tuesday morning, the Bruins confirmed the report that McAvoy was admitted to Massachusetts General Hospital on Monday, where he underwent testing related to an upper-body injury he sustained earlier in the tournament. McAvoy continues to be evaluated by doctors.

The Bruins said they will provide a further update on his condition when it becomes available. This is a huge loss for Team USA on their defense corps, who were already without Quinn Hughes. In what Jack Eichel called the biggest game he has played in a long time, the Americans will be without their second-best defenseman.

McAvoy Was a Force for the Team USA

In the first matchup in Montreal, Charlie McAvoy was a force on the backend. Everyone remembers the three fights in nine seconds, but it was McAvoy’s hit on Connor McDavid that really changed things. After Canada went up 1-0 on a goal by McDavid, McAvoy stepped up in his own defensive zone and laid out McDavid, sending a continuous message that Team USA was here.

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That was the point of the game on Saturday night at the Bell Centre. As Matthew Tkachuk said post-game, they wanted to let Canada know it was Team USA’s time now. However, it will be a tall order because of McAvoy’s loss on the backend.

Even though McAvoy has been held without a point, he has been one of the team leaders in ice time. He played 19:45 of ice in Game 1 in the 6-1 victory over Finland. Then, in the 3-1 victory over Canada, he was on the ice for 19:27.

Jaccob Slavin and Brock Faber played over 25 minutes of ice time in the first meeting against Canada and will need to be relied on again if the Americans want to stop a healthy Canada team. Noah Hanifin played just above 20 minutes with Zach Werenski, and Adam Fox had around 14 minutes of ice time.

With McAvoy out of the lineup, Jake Sanderson will play his second game of the tournament. Head coach Mike Sullivan will rely on this corps even more, especially Werenski, Faber, and Slavin. He has to hope that Fox picks up his game and becomes the player he was last year.

But this is a major blow to Team USA and their chances of winning on Thursday. It truly is the next man up. Frank Seravalli tweeted, “Sources say current plan for Team USA does not include any roster reinforcements in wake of injuries and McAvoy absence. USA has 12 forwards and 6 defensemen, so they currently cannot bring in anyone else for Thursday.”

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