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NHL Trade Talk Morning Roundup: Bruins, Senators & Maple Leafs

NHL Trade Talk Morning Roundup (Feb 18), Charlie McAvoy, Brady and Matthew Thackuk, and Auston Matthews all are injured for Team USA

by
Old Prof
February 18, 2025

Welcome to today’s NHL Trade Talk Morning Roundup (February 18). Each morning, we’ll bring you three key NHL stories. Here, you can stay updated on the latest team wins and losses, trade talk, and player news from around the NHL. Again, with no other NHL games on the slate, we’ll focus on the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off games in today’s Trade Talk roundup.

Yesterday was a busy day for the Four Nations. When the ice chips melted on the day, two North American teams will meet in Thursday’s championship game. It will be a battle between Team USA and Team Canada. However, the most significant issue—as is reported below—could be injuries. Suddenly, Team USA has some players down. Will these injuries put Team Canada in the driver’s seat for the final? We’ll see on Thursday.

Canada and USA Set for Championship Rematch

Team Canada and Team USA meet for the tournament title on Thursday in the championship game after an emotional round-robin game. Team Canada defeated Team Finland 5-3 to advance to the 4 Nations final against Team USA. Nathan MacKinnon (Colorado Avalanche) scored two goals for Canada, and Sam Reinhart (Florida Panthers) added three assists.

McAvoy Out for 4 Nations Face-Off Championship

Boston Bruins Charlie McAvoy suffered an upper-body injury in the 4 Nations tournament and won’t play in the championship final. McAvoy was evaluated at Massachusetts General Hospital. For Team USA, injuries have surfaced. The Tkachuk brothers—the Ottawa Senators Brady and the Florida Panthers Matthews—sustained injuries. The Toronto Maple Leafs Auston Matthews also missed the game against Team Sweden with an injury.

Charlie McAvoy injury Team USA — Charlie McAvoy suffered an injury for Team USA.

Quinn Hughes will join Team USA for the Final. According to NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly, Just like Thomas Harley and Team Canada, Quinn Hughes “is not ‘in’ unless someone else is definitely “out” due to injury or illness. The ruling is that Hughes can’t practice with the team or play until that happens.

Brady Tkachuk Injury Adds to U.S. Injury Issues

In our final NHL Trade Talk roundup, the Senators’ Brady Tkachuk suffered a lower-body injury and left for the remainder of the Team Sweden game. Team USA was already without Matthew Tkachuk, Auston Matthews, and Charlie McAvoy. The United States hopes to regain these injured players before the 4 Nations championship. As well, and this goes without saying, their regular NHL teams have to hope that none of these injuries carry over into the teams’ regular seasons.