Theodore to miss rest of 4 Nations Face-Off for Canada with upper-body injury

MONTREAL -- Shea Theodore will miss the rest of the 4 Nations Face-Off because of an upper-body injury he sustained in Canada’s 4-3 overtime win against Sweden at Bell Centre on Wednesday.

The Vegas Golden Knights announced Thursday that the defenseman is out week to week.

Theodore left the best-on-best tournament opener shortly after he was checked into the boards by Sweden forward Adrian Kempe at 2:23 of the second period.

Canada coach Jon Cooper had said Wednesday that Theodore would be unable to play again in the tournament, which runs through Feb. 20.

“That's a big blow,” Cooper said. “What a kid, and he only got to play six minutes. It's heartbreaking for the kid. And he was the first one there at the door high fiving everybody when we came off. It's a tough one to swallow because you just know how much it means. I guess in hindsight he got to touch the ice and get some time in there. But for us it was tough because you talk about the speed in that game and we had to fight through the last 50 minutes with five defensemen. That's a grind.”

Canada forward Connor McDavid acknowledged the impact of losing Theodore and praised the efforts of the remaining five defensemen to shoulder the load the rest of the game.

“I thought it hurt us a lot,” McDavid said. “He’s a great player and it’s tough. You guys saw the pace tonight, we felt the pace and it’s tough on those ‘D’ to play five ‘D’ to defend. We defended maybe a little bit too much but those five ‘D’ grinded and they did a great job. You never want to see anyone go down. We’re thinking about him, but I thought the way those five ‘D’ stepped up was really impressive.”

Theodore has 48 points (seven goals, 41 assists) in 55 games with the Golden Knights this season.

"I have (been in touch with him)," United States forward and Golden Knights teammate Jack Eichel said Thursday. "You know, obviously it [stinks]. First I think about Theo as a person. I know how much this tournament meant to him and representing his country and being on that team. So, I feel for him. And, then, yeah, obviously it's a huge loss for our team in Vegas and what he brings to our team. He's been so good this year. It’s never fun seeing anyone get hurt and obviously I care a lot about Theo as a person so I feel for him."

Theodore played 6:59 during nine shifts paired with Drew Doughty, who was a late addition to Canada’s roster. Doughty replaced Vegas defenseman Alex Pietrangelo, who was unable to take part in the tournament because of an ailment.

Doughty rotated through the rest of the game along with remaining defensemen Cale Makar, Josh Morrissey, Colton Parayko and Devon Toews.

“In a game like that, at that pace, having five defensemen, up and down the ice. We were talking in [the room], you can’t say enough about those guys competing right to the end,” said Canada goalie Jordan Binnington, who made 23 saves in the win. “It’s tough to see Shea go down like that, but it happened and sometimes things happen like that and it’s how you handle it. We are really proud of our D-men, our D-core, just stepping up and even the forwards are part of it, making it a little easier on the D-men.”

Travis Sanheim of the Philadelphia Flyers was a healthy scratch and is the only additional defenseman on Canada’s roster. Forward Sam Bennett and goalie Sam Montembeault also were healthy scratches.