Team USA's Charlie McAvoy to miss 4 Nations Face-Off title game ...

BOSTON -- United States defenseman Charlie McAvoy will miss the 4 Nations Face-Off championship game Thursday between the U.S. and Canada.

The Boston Bruins said in a statement Tuesday that McAvoy was admitted to Massachusetts General Hospital on Monday to undergo testing related to an upper-body injury. McAvoy sustained the injury during the 4 Nations Face-Off and is currently being evaluated by Bruins head team physician Dr. Peter Asnis.

McAvoy didn't play Monday in the United States' 2-1 loss to Sweden at TD Garden in Boston. The U.S. had already qualified for the championship game, having won in regulation against Finland to open the tournament before beating rival Canada in its second game.

Editor's Picks

1 Related

The 27-year-old was one of a few players who missed what was essentially an inconsequential game against Sweden. Team USA forwards Auston Matthews and Matthew Tkachuk also missed the Sweden game as a precautionary measure due to injury. The U.S. played New York Rangers forward Chris Kreider and Ottawa Senators defenseman Jake Sanderson in a game that also witnessed forward Brady Tkachuk get hurt in the first period with a lower-body injury. He returned for a 14-second shift in the first period but later was ruled out.

Teams that are managing multiple injury absences at forward or defense throughout the 4 Nations are allowed to call up a player that is currently not on their respective rosters as a replacement. It was an option Team Canada used earlier in the tournament when it lost Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Shea Theodore for the remainder of the event and when Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar couldn't play against in the first game against the U.S. It led to Canada calling up Dallas Stars defenseman Thomas Harley.

Team USA and Pittsburgh Penguins coach Mike Sullivan, who is McAvoy's father-in-law, said after the game that he wouldn't rule out using the replacement player protocol. But he also sounded optimistic that the United States wouldn't need to utilize an injury replacement player.

A source told ESPN's Emily Kaplan that Team USA is working with the NHL on bringing in a replacement defenseman.