The Championship game of the 4 Nations Face-Off between Brady Tkachuk‘s Team USA and Team Canada has moments to watch. Head coach Mike Sullivan is dealing with the loss of NHL star Matthew Tkachuk in the second period, which is good news for the Canadians.
Matthew proved to be a key star for Team USA, assisting his brother Brady to tie the game late in the first period of the Championship game in the 4 Nations Face-Off. Both were in doubt for the night at TD Garden, but Matthew appears to have a big problem.
Tkachuk did not start the third period after missing two shifts at the end of the second. He missed the last seven minutes, then took a very short shift with no momentum. The Florida Panthers star was then seen stretching his leg on the bench, clearly in pain.
The average length of Tkachuk’s shifts on Championship Game was 29 seconds. He only played 4 shifts in the second period. This is also not a good sign for the Panthers thinking about the resumption of the NHL regular season.
Who replaces Matthew Tkachuk in the 4 Nations Face-Off final?
It will be seen how Matthew’s situation evolves in the game against Team Canada. The Panthers star is being replaced by Detroit Red Wings center Dylan Larkin, who shares a line with Brady Tkachuk and Auston Matthews.
Is Brady Tkachuk playing for Team USA in the 4 Nations final?
There has been much speculation about Brady Tkachuk’s possible absence from the championship game against Team Canada. The truth is that the Ottawa Senators star was out with a hit in the game against Sweden and missed Wednesday’s practice, raising doubts about his status. However, Brady was on the ice from the start and even scored a goal against Canada, assisted by his brother Matthew, who later went down with an injury.
“I’ve never experienced anything like this. I wouldn’t miss this game for the world,” Brady Tkachuk said in an interview with ESPN. “There was no way I was going to miss this one,” he insisted.