Star Defenseman Unexpectedly Drops Out of Four Nations Faceoff
Surprising news hit the hockey world Sunday night, as Team Canada defenseman Alex Pietrangelo announced he will not be attending the Four Nations Faceoff.
The Four Nations Faceoff will mark the first best-on-best hockey the NHL has seen in nearly a decade. It is a highly awaited event, featuring teams from Canada, the United States, Sweden, and Finland.
Unfortunately for Team Canada, defensive cornerstone Alex Pietrangelo who is among the most consummate veterans in the NHL, and who was a member of Team Canada at the 2014 Olympic Games , will not be attending.
The Vegas Golden Knights defenseman has two Stanley Cups under his belt, most recently in 2023, and his experience and compete will be sorely missed.
Due to a reported ailment that will need recovery ahead of an inevitable playoff run for the Vegas Golden Knights, Pietrangelo must put his real team first, rather than Team Canada.
Pietrangelo will need to be replaced on Team Canada, and several possibilities exist to be that player; the team could go for more purely offensive talents such as Evan Bouchard or Brandon Montour, veteran stalwarts Drew Doughty or Chris Tanev, or another route entirely.
Per Elliotte Friedman, Team Canada has significant runway to name a replacement; in fact, they are eligible to announce the player as late as the night ahead of their first game against Team Sweden.
However, especially as fans will persist for answers, it is likely their decision will be made soon.
We will see if Pietrangelo's decision sparks other players to make a similar decision, prioritizing a Stanley Cup bid over a somewhat meaningless tournament (it's no Olympic Games).
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Gabriel Vilardi | 2 | 2 | 4 | |
| Cale Makar | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Kyle Connor | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Matthew Boldy | - | 3 | 3 | |
| Nicolas Roy | - | 3 | 3 | |
| Marcus Foligno | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Claude Giroux | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Brayden McNabb | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Artemi Panarin | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Mark Scheifele | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Vincent Trocheck | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Keegan Kolesar | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Nathan MacKinnon | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Martin Necas | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Reilly Smith | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Tim Stutzle | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Mason Appleton | 1 | - | 1 | |
| William Borgen | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Sam Carrick | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jack Drury | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Complete stats | ||||
| STANDINGS 2024-2025 | ||||||
TOP 10 | GP | W | L | OL | PTS | |
Capitals | 49 | 33 | 11 | 5 | 71 | |
Jets | 51 | 34 | 14 | 3 | 71 | |
Golden Knights | 50 | 31 | 15 | 4 | 66 | |
Oilers | 49 | 31 | 15 | 3 | 65 | |
Hurricanes | 50 | 30 | 16 | 4 | 64 | |
Stars | 49 | 31 | 17 | 1 | 63 | |
Maple Leafs | 50 | 30 | 18 | 2 | 62 | |
Wild | 50 | 29 | 17 | 4 | 62 | |
Devils | 51 | 28 | 17 | 6 | 62 | |
Panthers | 51 | 29 | 19 | 3 | 61 | |
| Conference | Cumulative | ||||||