Quinn Hughes' agent confirms D-man prioritizing Vancouver Canucks with major decision to pull out of 4 Nations Face-Off

The news that Team USA was afraid of ahead of the 4 Nations Face-off tournament has been confirmed. Vancouver Canucks defenseman and captain Quinn Hughes, the reigning Norris Trophy winner as the League's top blue liner, will not be playing in the tournament.

Hughes missed his last four games due to an undisclosed injury, and decided to sit out the tournament to prioritize his health.

According to his agent, Pat Brisson, the decision wasn't easy - but it is another example of his maturity. Brisson touched upon the responsibility Hughes feels and he wants to be in the best shape for the Canucks.

"It's not in his DNA to back out of anything," said Brisson. "It was so hard for him to make that decision, but he just feels responsible as captain of the Canucks to be the best he can be for his team."

"His level of maturity is unmatched for a 25-year-old. At 14 or 15 he wasn’t even a big prospect to become an NHL player, let alone become dominant and win the Norris Trophy (last season). Could he have played this week? He could probably still run a blue line better than 90 percent of the guys in this league, but it has been a long year, and to have the chance to rest and rehab, we just felt it was the bigger benefit.”

Hughes has officially been replaced on Team USA by Ottawa Senators defenseman Jake Sanderson.

The United States, Canada, Sweden and Finland are being represented as part of the impending tournament, which will take place between Feb. 12-20.

Canucks captain Quinn Hughes is the reigning Norris Trophy winner as the NHL's top defenseman.

Hughes has already cemented himself as one of the top defensemen in Canucks history, having surpassed Alex Edler on the all-time franchise list for assists - and did so in far less time.

There was a vacancy for the Canucks' team captaincy after the team decided to trade Bo Horvat as part of a blockbuster trade to the New York Islanders. Before the 2023-24 NHL season, Hughes became the 15th captain in team history, and just the third defenseman to hold the title.

Despite missing the last handful of games, Hughes has already scored 14 goals to go with 45 assists, and is on pace to come within four points of last season's total of 92.

The Canucks benefit from the fact that Hughes' injury comes at the time of the tournament, giving him plenty of time to heal before the schedule resumes.