BROSSARD, Quebec — Team Canada defenseman Cale Makar will not play vs. the United States on Saturday night at the 4 Nations Face-Off.
Canada’s top defenseman, who was labeled a game-time decision earlier in the day, is battling an illness that held him out of Friday’s practice. Makar was back on the ice for Saturday’s morning skate, and coach Jon Cooper said after the workout that they would make a final decision on Makar’s status later in the day.
“I’m not going to confirm [Makar is in],” Cooper said at the time, adding that “trust me, this won’t be a decision where we ever put him in harm’s way. So if he’s in the lineup, he’s good to go.”
Instead, Dallas Stars defenseman Thomas Harley, who arrived in Montreal and has not practiced with team, will skate in Team Canada’s second game at the Bell Centre. Harley, 23, has nine goals and 29 points in the NHL this season.
The Canadian blue line was already depleted when Shea Theodore suffered an upper-body injury in the tournament opener against Sweden on Wednesday. Makar took on an even larger role in that game after Theodore exited in the second period; Makar finished the game with a team-high 28:06 time on ice.
The Theodore injury gave Canada just six healthy defensemen, and with Makar under the weather as well, the NHL and NHLPA agreed Friday that Canada could bring Harley to Montreal on standby.
Harley would have been allowed to skate Saturday morning only if Makar was absent. Instead, Harley watched the session from a hallway, and when Makar went off the ice, Harley joined the rest of Canada’s group and received a loud round of cheers from his fellow players.
Cooper confirmed that Canada will go back to Jordan Binnington in net against the U.S. Cooper said Friday that he would speak with Canada’s goalies — including Binnington, Adin Hill and Sam Montembeault — before making a final call.
Binnington recorded 23 saves and an .885 save percentage while backstopping Canada to a 4-3 overtime win against Sweden. Cooper saw enough to give Binnington another shot on Saturday.
“He gave us a chance to win; watch the overtime,” Cooper said of Binnington’s four-save effort in the extra frame. “That said it all for me. At the biggest moment of the game, the kid came up huge for us. He deserves it.”