3 Players Whose Health Makes 4 Nations Face-Off Participation Worrisome

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The 4 Nations Face-Off is a month away, and we already know who will be representing Canada, the US, Sweden and Finland in what is the closest facsimile to a best-on-best tournament that we’ve seen in some time. But while excitement builds as the tournament nears, the reaction of the NHL teams that employ the players who were selected likely lands somewhere in between pride and trepidation.

For as much as club executives would love to see their players shine on an international stage, the spectre of injury is never far from any hockey competition – particularly one with the level of intensity that the 4 Nations Face-Off looks poised to deliver. The February tournament will lead directly into a critical stretch of the NHL season where playoff races are ramping up, so any sort of injury-related absence brought on by participation in the event would be catastrophic to any team in the league.

Now, injuries can befall anyone over the course of a given game, but some players loom larger as concerns in that regard. Some are more injury-prone than others, while some seem determined to forge ahead by participating in the event despite being potentially better off giving their bodies time to recuperate from an earlier injury.

These players might just have their general managers getting a little more anxious than most as we near the 4 Nations Face-Off.

Auston Matthews (Toronto Maple Leafs / Team USA)

Perhaps the biggest story of the Toronto Maple Leafs’ season thus far, Auston Matthews really hasn’t been fully healthy at all over the first half. Fresh off a groundbreaking 69-goal campaign, he has mustered just 14 goals in 28 games while being plagued by a mysterious upper-body ailment. Battling the injury since training camp, the 27-year-old has already spent two separate stints on injured reserve (IR) and even went to Germany for treatment.

Matthews has since returned to the lineup, and has given every reason for optimism of his status moving forward. With three goals and eight points in his four games back, he certainly looks like the old Auston. But still, you can forgive Maple Leafs management for not being too keen to see their superstar rush to go test his health in playoff-level games while so many others get to rest their own nagging injuries. They may, however, have to face the music if Matthews, who has openly expressed his excitement for the event, decides he still wants to give the event a go.

The Maple Leafs have plenty riding on the 4 Nations Face-Off taking place without incident, as Mitch Marner (Canada) and William Nylander (Sweden) are also set to participate, competing against their NHL teammate. But with health struggles already plaguing Matthews to date this season, the last thing the club wants is to have another extended absence awaiting their captain on the other side of the event.

Linus Ullmark (Ottawa Senators / Team Sweden)

The Ottawa Senators were in the midst of a five-game win streak and had won eight of their past nine when Linus Ullmark was forced to leave their Dec. 22 game against the Edmonton Oilers in the first period with back tightness. Having surged into playoff contention at that point, they have struggled to a 1-5-1 record in seven games, getting shut out 4-0 by the Buffalo Sabres in their post-World Junior Championship return home from a lengthy road trip on Thursday night.

In all likelihood, Ullmark won’t be making the trip to join Team Sweden in Montreal and Boston, especially now that it’s been announced that the 31-year-old will be out “week-to-week” with a back injury. Even if he did get healthy in time, he’d be in tough to earn the No. 1 goaltending role against countrymen Filip Gustavsson and Jacob Markstrom.

That being said, the Senators’ recent surge with Ullmark and slide without him highlight how important the former Boston Bruin is to Ottawa. For the franchise to have any hope of ending an eight-year playoff drought, the health of their No. 1 goalie is of paramount importance – which is precisely why GM Steve Staios, head coach Travis Green and the rest of the Senators’ brain trust surely want him to have no part in the 4 Nations Face-Off.

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Mark Stone (Vegas Golden Knights / Team Canada)

The Vegas Golden Knights are set to send seven players to the 4 Nations Face-Off, the second-highest total from any NHL team (the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers are sending eight). That means that the current Western Conference points leaders have plenty at stake when the tournament kicks off on Feb. 12. However, not all injury risks are alike.

Sure, the Golden Knights can’t afford to lose any of Jack Eichel, Adin Hill, Alex Pietrangelo, Noah Hanifin, Shea Theodore or William Karlsson for a lengthy duration, but none of them carry the same level of concern as Mark Stone.

Mark Stone Vegas Golden Knights
Mark Stone Vegas, Golden Knights (Photo by Chris Unger/Getty Images)

Canada’s motivations for selecting Stone have been clear this season – the Golden Knights captain ranks second on the club in scoring despite having played in just 27 games, bringing defensive intensity and leadership to go along with his offensive firepower. Unfortunately, those 27 games played (he was sidelined with a lower-body injury in November) won’t come as much of a surprise to fans who have followed the hard-luck 32-year-old who has played in just 132 of 246 regular season games over the last three seasons.

The good news is that Stone returned to the lineup on Dec. 6 and has seen action in every game since. On the other hand, that also may give him more resolve to participate in the event. Suffice it to say, it’ll be a nervous mid-February for GM Kelly McCrimmon and the Vegas front office.

To be clear, there is plenty of excitement surrounding the 4 Nations Face-Off. Apart from the thrill of seeing what is nearly best-on-best international hockey, the star-studded event represents a tremendous development opportunity for its participants, ahead of both the NHL playoffs and the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy. And yet, it’ll be hard for team personnel to watch the action without feeling at least a little anxious about the health and well-being of your players – particularly if you happen to be employed by the Maple Leafs, Senators or Golden Knights.

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