Canucks’ Quinn Hughes to miss 4 Nations Face-Off; Senators’ Jake Sanderson joins USA

Vancouver Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin has announced on Sunday that defenseman Quinn Hughes will not be playing for the United States at the 4 Nations Face-Off.

General Manager Patrik Allvin announced today that D Quinn Hughes will not play for the United States at the 4 Nations Face-Off.

— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) February 9, 2025

Hughes’ status for the tournament had been in doubt all week, as he had missed the last four games for the Canucks with a lower-body injury. The team mentioned that they were going to talk with the Canucks’ captain about the plan for the 4 Nations Face-Off and the rest of the regular season beyond, and with the Canucks deep in a race for one of the wild card spots in the Western Conference, it appears that they’d rather Hughes rest up over the two-week break and return healthier and ready for the final stretch of the season.

Hughes was one of the initial six players named to the United States roster back on June 2024 coming off of a Norris-trophy winning season in 2023-24. He was also set to play with his brother, New Jersey Devils center Jack Hughes, who is still set to play in the tournament.

When healthy, Hughes has been having another phenomenal season with the Canucks, with 14 goals and 45 assists for 59 points in just 47 games. His play has been pivotal to the Canucks success this season, with his absences in the Vancouver lineup throughout the season being so noticeable that it has earned him consideration for not only for the Norris Trophy, but the Hart Trophy as well.

Jake Sanderson has been added to the Team USA 🇺🇸 #4Nations roster as an injury replacement, taking the spot vacated by Quinn Hughes.

— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) February 9, 2025

In place of Hughes, Ottawa Senators defenseman Jake Sanderson has been named as the injury replacement for the United States in the tournament. While the shortlist for the USA selections was never unveiled, Sanderson was likely one of the final cuts for the team, and his recent play has only helped get him on the roster.

Sanderson will don the red, white and blue jersey for the fifth time in his career, also doing so for the 2018-19 U17 World Hockey Championship, the 2024 World Championships, the 2020-21 World Juniors and the 2022 Olympics. He is the second Senator to be named to the United States roster along with Brady Tkachuk, and the fourth in the tournament overall (Linus Ullmark for Sweden & Nikolas Matinpalo for Finland).

Sanderson has been having his best season to date, with 5 goals and 30 assists for 35 points in 55 games, and is already only three points behind his previous career high established last season.

The United States will hope that the Hughes’ injury won’t drastically affect their chances at winning at the 4 Nations Face-Off, which begins later this week. USA will kick off their schedule on Thursday when they play Finland in Montreal at 8 p.m. EST.