Sign up for the Today newsletter
Get everything you need to know to start your day, delivered right to your inbox every morning.
Bruins’ Charlie McAvoy ruled out of 4 Nations championship game
McAvoy landed several heavy hits against Canada during Team USA's win on Saturday.
If Team USA is going to defeat Canada again in Thursday’s anticipated 4 Nations Face-Off championship game, it will have to do it without one of its most impactful blueliners.
Less than 12 hours after The Boston Globe’s Jim McBride reported that Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy was admitted to Mass. General Hospital on Monday night to treat an upper-body injury, the Bruins confirmed McAvoy’s hospitalization in a statement — adding that he has been ruled out of Thursday’s game.
“Charlie was admitted to Massachusetts General Hospital on Monday to undergo testing related to an upper-body injury sustained during the 4 Nations Face-Off and is currently being evaluated by Boston Bruins Head Team Physician Dr. Peter Asnis,” the statement read. “He will not play for Team USA in the 4 Nations Face-Off Championship Game on Thursday at TD Garden. The Boston Bruins will provide further updates on his condition and status as soon as they become available.”
Hours later, Bruins interim head coach Joe Sacco was asked if there was any additional update on the team’s top defenseman.
Advertisement:
“No, nothing further — besides the statement that was obviously issued,” Sacco said, adding: “Once we find out more, we’ll be able to give you guys more information on that too. … But in the meantime, we’re just hoping for Charlie’s health, that he has a speedy recovery.”
McAvoy’s absence marks a significant blow to both Team USA on Thursday and a Bruins team looking to claw its way back into playoff contention once regular-season play resumes Saturday.
McAvoy — who serves as one of Team USA’s alternate captains alongside Matthew Tkachuk — was a punishing force for the Americans in their two victories against Finland and Canada during round-robin play. He missed Monday’s 2-1 loss to Sweden due to injury.
The 27-year-old defenseman left his fingerprints all over Team USA’s dramatic win against Canada in Montreal on Saturday — landing several heavy hits against superstars Connor McDavid and Sidney Crosby while logging 19:27 of ice time.
Advertisement:
McAvoy’s bone-crunching check against McDavid in the U.S. defensive zone was credited by Brady Tkachuk as the spark the Americans needed — as Jake Guentzel scored just 26 seconds later to tie the game in the first period.
It’s unclear what led to McAvoy’s injury, as he didn’t miss any time during Saturday’s win over Canada. He did seem to hurt his shoulder after getting cross-checked into a post by Joel Armia during Team USA’s win over Finland on Thursday.
Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff reported earlier Tuesday that McAvoy was dealing with an infection “that stemmed from a minor injury” — later adding that there is no long-term concern about whatever injury McAvoy is dealing with.
McAvoy has been hindered by injuries since the calendar flipped to 2025, as the Bruins alternate captain missed seven games with a nagging upper-body injury from Jan. 11-30.
Team USA is dealing with several other injuries beyond McAvoy heading into Thursday’s showdown with Canada.
Along with McAvoy, Team USA did not have top forwards Matthew Tkachuk (lower body) and Auston Matthews (upper body) available for Monday’s matchup against Sweden.
Advertisement:
To make matters worse, forward Brady Tkachuk also left in the first period on Monday with a lower-body injury — shortening the Americans’ forward corps to just 10 skaters for most of the night.
“Brady obviously had a lower-body injury,” Team USA head coach Mike Sullivan said postgame. “We held him out more for precautionary reasons at that point. I haven’t got an update to this point after the game yet, so we’ll see how he responds. But I don’t anticipate it being an issue.”
While McAvoy has been ruled out Thursday, ESPN’s Emily Kaplan reported Tuesday that both Tkachuk brothers intend to play against Canada.
On Monday, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman also reported that there is “no concern” about Matthews missing Thursday’s final, with Sullivan noting that the Team USA captain is “nicked up”.
Even though McAvoy’s status after the tournament remains up in the air, Sacco acknowledged that both McAvoy and the Bruins were ready to accept the risks that came with participating in an international competition.
“I think every team probably goes into it a little bit on edge about their players,” Sacco said Tuesday. “It’s obviously a great tournament. It’s great notoriety, it’s great publicity for the game.
Advertisement:
“So I think every team is probably a little bit nervous when they send their players. But it’s the game of hockey and things happen. You just hope for the best. You pray for the best when they’re out there.”
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com