Elliotte Friedman makes his opinion absolutely clear on Thomas Harley, $47,100,000 superstar Quinn Hughes' availability for 4 Nations final  

A showdown of epic proportions is set for Thursday in what will be the final game of the Four Nations Face-Off tournament, as Team USA looks to claim the championship with a victory over Team Canada.

If successful, it would mark Team USA’s second victory over Canada in less than a week, following their thrilling 3-1 triumph at Montreal’s Bell Centre on Saturday night in a tense and heated affair.

And while they’ve brought Canucks defenseman Quinn Hughes, tournament rules may prevent the defenseman, who is under a six-year, $47.1 million with Vancouver, from playing. Meanwhile, Team Canada was allowed to have Thomas Harley play due to Cale Makar's illness, an additional loss to the lineup after Shea Theodore’s injury.

Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman is no fan of the rules that may keep players like Hughes out, saying he believes they should be modified given the precedent set during the tournament.

"Let everyone be eligible to play," he said. "I understand the idea going into this event: no additions unless an emergency. No issues with this in theory, but, this incredible tournament — wildly exceeding expectations — shows this to be an impossible standard."

"We’ve seen these rules modified on the fly, so this isn’t uncharted territory. Both Canada and the USA would benefit. This tournament is already a win. A huge success. This is best-on-best, right? Let’s make sure of it for the final."

Both Team USA and Team Canada have had to look for other options in player personnel due to illnesses and injuries. Canada lost both Theodore and Makar, while USA has lost Charlie McAvoy to an infection stemming from an upper-body injury.

Both Matthew Tkachuk and Brady Tkachuk are expected to play for Team USA on Thursday

Team USA didn't have Matthew Tkachuk available in Monday’s 2-1 loss to Team Sweden at Boston’s TD Garden; he was held out as a precaution to ensure he would be healthy enough to play on Thursday.

His brother, Brady Tkachuk, also left the game in the first period after appearing to injure himself in a collision with goaltender Sam Ersson.

But for fans concerned about the brothers’ availability for Thursday’s showdown, there’s no need to worry. ESPN analyst Emily Kaplan wrote on X that both brothers are expected to play against Team Canada:

"While Charlie McAvoy has been ruled out for Four Nations Final, some good news for Team USA on injury front: I’ve been re-assured both Tkachuk brothers intend on playing Thursday vs Canada. Believe Team USA is talking to league on if they can get injury replacement for McAvoy."

Both Tkachuk brothers have two goals so far in the tournament.