The Four Nations Face-Off started with a Tring at the Bell Centre on Wednesday! A stacked Team Canada showed what it’s capable of by winning (4-3) its first match of the tournament against Sweden in overtime. However, the victory came at a cost. Defenseman Shea Theodore sustained an upper-body injury and is likely to miss the rest of the tournament. But that isn’t the only thing that has got the NHL community in knots.

Under the present circumstances, Team Canada has called the Dallas Stars’ Thomas Harley as the standby defenseman. However, the 23-year-old NHL star can’t officially join the roster until another injury occurs. Nonetheless, this piece of information has the fans scratching their heads.

A post by The Athletics’ Chris Johnston from February 13 shared the shake-up that Canada is looking at after Theodore’s right shoulder injury came to light. “Sources say that Team Canada is having Thomas Harley travel to Boston as its standby ‘D’ in case of emergency,” the social media update announced. With the 4 Nations Face-Off leaving very small room for tackling injuries with its 23-man roster regulations, it looks like Team Canada is doing everything it can to be prepared for the rest of the tournament.

While the teams will be permitted to have more players on their roster for the 2026 Milan Olympics, the 4 Nations Face-Off couldn’t apply the same rules because of the negative feedback that the NHLPA received from the members. However, with Theodore out, Canada had to resort to finding a solution in case another of their athletes got injured during the ongoing tournament. “We have told them they can identify and notify a player that he would be ‘next up.’ But they know they have to play with the six they have left until they drop below that. Can’t add anyone to the team or have him participate in any team activities until that happens,” the NHLPA deputy commissioner said about the message that was conveyed to Canada.

However, Harley’s stroke of luck has fans bewildered. Considering Harley’s place of birth was on this side of the border, one fan was genuinely curious: how is he even announced as the backup defenseman by the Canadian side? “Isn’t he American?” said a baffled fan after learning about Thomas’ possible Canadian duties. Others had things to ponder on their own.

Fans note their astonishment about the 4 Nations Face-Off changes

For now, Travis Sanheim will fill in for the defensive role for Canada in their next match against the USA on Saturday. But Harley will be kept on the radar by the squad just in case Canada falls below 6 defensemen after another injury. “I can’t imagine that anybody that’s in charge is going to let us play short,” Team Canada HC Jon Cooper said, “That wouldn’t be great for anybody.”

However, the staff opting for Thomas Harley for the 4 Nations Face-Off has the fans wondering: how many players declined the call before the Dallas Stars player was zeroed upon? “Must have been a lot of no’s before they got a yes. I know if I wasn’t an original pick and made plans, I wouldn’t cancel to go sit and wait for an injury,” one fan said flatly. “Is it cause the 10 better d men were all in the Caribbean,” another tried to find an explanation as to why Harley would get the green light instead of others.

However, as Sportsnet analyst Elliotte Friedman points out, selecting Thomas might have had some reason. The Dallas Stars’ general manager Jim Nill is on the management team while the NHL team’s head coach Peter DeBoer is among the coaching staff for the Canadians in the 4 Nations Face-Off.

And yet, opting to get someone like Harley as the backup while the Oilers’ Evan Bouchard still remains shunned by the national team isn’t something that’s sitting well with the fans. In fact, arguments have raised that Bouchard has been better this season than any of the players holding down the blue line for the team in the 4 Nations Face-Off this year. Citing that, one fan complained, “Sources say Team Canada hates Evan Bouchard.”

A memo about emergency in-tournament roster additions was circulated by the NHLPA in late January. But no one expected to see Canada as the first team to try to make use of the rule changes. One fan was taken aback, apparently not aware of the apparent memo tweak that happened after Theodore’s injury, “Are we altering the rules for Canada?”

With the USA starting its journey in the tournament against harsh conditions, how do you think Team Canada will try to take advantage when they lock horns later this week? Tell us in a comment!