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Nick Suzuki: Saying no to Hockey Canada hurt him for the Four Nations

 Charles-Alexis Brisebois
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Nick Suzuki: Saying no to Hockey Canada hurt him for the Four Nations
Credit: Getty Images

You can sense that Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield are upset that they didn’t get the call that they would be taking part in the Four Nations Tournament in February.

That’s understandable.

I don’t know how closed the door is for Caufield. After all, he’s the NHL’s leading American scorer, and even if he doesn’t play well defensively, he can help the States. And he’s been named in this piece that aims to say who the replacement candidates are in case of need.

And if you do the research you want in the paper, you won’t find Suzuki’s name in the Canadiens section.

Yet Suzuki is a fine hockey player who is responsible on 200 feet. That he’s not considered a serious option, at this point, must be hiding something.

And on that subject, Darren Dreger(as he told TSN 690) believes he’s hit the nail on the head.

Saying no to Team Canada in the spring of 2024, in preparation for the World Championships, has undoubtedly hurt his candidacy. After all, you’d have to be pretty good to say no to Hockey Canada and have it make no difference.

If Hockey Canada calls you, you’d better have a good reason for saying no. – Darren Dreger

Suzuki said no because he wanted to spend time with his significant other. He took her on a trip… and along the way, it wasn’t his girlfriend: it was his fiancée. But that obviously worked against him.

Note that if a player plays in the NCAA instead of the CHL, it can work against him at the CMJ. That’s obviously how hockey works in Canada. #MichaelHage

There’s a certain amount of hypocrisy here, though, because Samuel Montembeault also said no to the tournament last spring… but made the Four Nations Club anyway. But then again, it’s not the same game in front of the net… and Monty speaks French. #Hehe

It’s also worth noting that Dreger isn’t even sure whether Suzuki received a call to tell him he wasn’t making the club. Several players (including John Tavares) have received such a call, and that’s another clue as to how the Canadiens’ #14 is viewed by Hockey Canada.

I don’t know if this will change for the Olympics if Suzuki agrees to go to the 2025 World Championships. But in the short term, you’d think he could book a vacation in February 2025 with his fiancée.

And if it motivates the Habs captain in the meantime, that’ll be something.

Note also that, according to Renaud Lavoie, if Nick Suzuki were playing for Jon Cooper and the Tampa Bay Lightning instead of the Habs, it’s clear in his mind that he would have received his invitation.

Cooper, who takes a lot of room in decisions, will have three of his players with him at the tournament.


Overtime

– Chris Kreider doesn’t want to talk about the Jacob Trouba situation.

– Peter Laviolette on the same page as his boss.

– Read more.

– Difficult for Québécois on the international hockey scene. [JdeM]

– Oh well.

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