An unfortunate injury to Quinn Hughes knocked the reigning Norris Trophy winner out of the U.S. lineup for the 4 Nations Face-Off and opened the door for a younger defenseman to make some Olympic hockey history.

USA Hockey selected 22-year-old Jake Sanderson to replace Hughes. Sanderson joining the U.S. puts him back together with Brock Faber three years after they were teammates in the Beijing Olympic bubble after the NHL pulled out at the eleventh hour because of pandemic-related scheduling issues.

Faber, the rookie of the year runner-up last season with Minnesota, and Sanderson now have the best chances of being the only U.S. players at back-to-back Olympics in 2022 and ’26 with Milan on the horizon.

“We’re focused on this tournament, but it’s hard not to look in the future with the possibility of an opportunity like that,” Faber said Monday. “That’s definitely something we both strive to be a part of. It would be a huge honor to represent this country on the biggest stage like that.”

The U.S. would have loved to have brothers Quinn and Jack Hughes together for the 4 Nations. But the Vancouver captain, who was injured in a recent game, decided it was in his and the Canucks’ best interest to sit this one out.

Crosby says he’s good to go for Canada

After missing Pittsburgh’s final two games before the NHL break for the 4 Nations Face-Off, Sidney Crosby took part in Canada’s first practice Monday and declared himself good to go.

When it comes to a rare chance to play in an international tournament with the best players in the world, it was going to take more than a banged-up arm to keep Crosby out, though the past several days included plenty of work to make sure it was safe to get on the ice.

Crosby is the captain again after helping Canada win the 2016 World Cup of Hockey and take gold at the 2014 Sochi Olympics. And, of course, he scored the winning goal on home ice at the 2010 Vancouver Games.

Finland’s rotating ‘D’

Much like the U.S. with Hughes, Finland lost an elite defenseman when Miro Heiskanen injured his left knee and underwent surgery that changed his status to “month to month.” Finland also lost two other veterans at the position, Jani Hakanpää and Rasmus Ristolainen, testing the country’s depth in a year with a lack of potential options.

Captain Aleskander Barkov, the best defensive forward in the league, has skated a few shifts back on defense and is ready to go to the rescue if absolutely, positively needed.

Doughty is ready

Drew Doughty has played just six games with the Los Angeles Kings since recovering from surgery to repair a broken left ankle. Still, the 35-year-old leapt at the opportunity of being added to Canada’s roster to replace fellow two-time Stanley Cup champion Alex Pietrangelo, who withdrew.

Ullmark is also ready

Sweden found out a few weeks ago goaltender Jacob Markstrom would not be available for the 4 Nations because of injury. Around the same time, 2023 Vezina Trophy winner Linus Ullmark was nursing some back problems

But Ullmark, the Ottawa Senators goaltender, returned to games last week. Sweden also has Filip Gustavsson and Samuel Ersson, Markstrom’s replacement, but Ullmark is the most accomplished of the three.