Charlie McAvoy suffered an upper-body injury that became infected, causing him to miss Team USA’s decisive matchup against Team Canada in the NHL‘s Four Nations Face-Off Final. Though McAvoy won’t dress for the American team, he will still represent the Stars and Stripes, as he made clear in his latest social media post.
McAvoy’s absence will be a focal point for the USA as they vye to contain a star-studded offense in Team Canada. Jake Sanderson will fill in for the Boston Bruins’ defender against the Canadians.
While McAvoy’s injury was a huge blow for the red, white, and blue, the 27-year-old defenseman will still be supporting his teammates, hoping for a win that would snap the USA’s championship drought, with their last trophy coming during the 1996 World Cup of Hockey.
On the eve of the marquee matchup involving two countries with a lot of history and animosity on the rink, McAvoy posted a clear message with his post on Instagram stories, sending a clear message to the rest of Team USA as he left the hospital.
“Free as a bird,“ McAvoy stated on his story, along with a photograph of him listening to Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Free Bird” in his car. Team USA has used the hit as its goal song during the best-on-best tournament.
No Hughes brothers connection
After much buzz and speculation, star Quinn Hughes wasn’t eligible to suit up for Team USA and didn’t travel to Boston ahead of the biggest game of the NHL season so far.
Thus, Jack Hughes won’t be able to fulfill his dream of playing alongside his older brother in the NHL’s best-on-best competition. However, the two are aware that they’ll have many more opportunities to play together in the future, and the youngest sibling, Luke, could join them as well.