{"id":461233,"date":"2026-02-08T06:34:08","date_gmt":"2026-02-08T06:34:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/461233\/"},"modified":"2026-02-08T06:34:08","modified_gmt":"2026-02-08T06:34:08","slug":"nick-suzukis-olympic-role-with-team-canada-takes-unexpected-turn-after-brayden-point-injury","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/461233\/","title":{"rendered":"Nick Suzuki\u2019s Olympic role with Team Canada takes unexpected turn after Brayden Point injury"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&#13;<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t  &#13;<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/640500.webp.webp\" style=\"width:100%;\" border=\"0\" alt=\"Dec 28, 2022; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Lightning center Brayden Point (21) and Montreal Canadiens center Nick Suzuki (14) fight to control the puck during the third period at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-Imagn Images\" title=\"Dec 28, 2022; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Lightning center Brayden Point (21) and Montreal Canadiens center Nick Suzuki (14) fight to control the puck during the third period at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-Imagn Images\"\/>&#13;<\/p>\n<p>Photo credit: Kim Klement-Imagn Images<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s devastating news for one of Canada\u2019s top forwards, but it could be a game-changer for the captain of the Montreal Canadiens.<\/p>\n<p>The worst-case scenario has been confirmed for Brayden Point: the injury he suffered last week will officially prevent him from taking part in the Olympic Games.<\/p>\n<p>Lightning general manager Julien BriseBois confirmed to insider Pierre LeBrun that the player is crushed by the turn of events.<\/p>\n<p>To replace him in the Canadian lineup, young forward Seth Jarvis received the call.<\/p>\n<p>However, the impact of this change could be felt directly in how Nick Suzuki is used in Milan.<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s be honest, Brayden Point was expected to play a crucial role at center, thanks to his strong 200-foot game and offensive production.<\/p>\n<p>That exact mandate now risks landing on the shoulders of the Canadiens\u2019 number 14.<\/p>\n<p>With Point sidelined, and Anthony Cirelli also out (replaced by Sam Bennett), Canada loses two of its best defensive centers.<\/p>\n<p>A golden opportunity for the Montreal Canadiens captain, Nick Suzuki<\/p>\n<p>Nick Suzuki has the ideal profile to fill this sudden void.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Seth Jarvis added to the Canadian Olympic squad, but Nick Suzuki feels like the most suitable replacement for what Brayden Point could bring. I think the door just opened for the Canadiens\u2019 captain to fill a bigger role than he might\u2019ve initially been designated.<\/p>\n<p>That said, feel bad for Point and Anthony Cirelli. Terrible to have lifelong dreams dissolve on the precipice of them coming true.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>-Eric Engels<\/p>\n<p>He may not end up on the top line, but his responsibilities on the penalty kill and in defensive assignments have likely just skyrocketed (along with his expected ice time).<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s fair to say there is now a realistic scenario where Suzuki even earns power-play time, a spot that seemed out of reach just a few days ago.<\/p>\n<p>The Canadiens center\u2019s reliability is becoming a rare and valuable commodity for Team Canada\u2019s coaching staff.<\/p>\n<p>The tournament is fast approaching: Canada will hit the ice in exactly one week, on Thursday, February 12 at 10:40 a.m., to face Czechia.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s a depth test for the Canadian roster, but a golden opportunity for Suzuki to prove his value on the biggest international stage.<\/p>\n<p>Previously on Montreal Hockey Fanatics<\/p>\n<p>POLL<\/p>\n<p>6 HOURS AGO|192 ANSWERS<\/p>\n<p>Nick Suzuki\u2019s Olympic role with Team Canada takes unexpected turn after Brayden Point injury<\/p>\n<p>Will Nick Suzuki finish the tournament among Canada\u2019s top five scorers?<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"&#13; &#13; &#13; Photo credit: Kim Klement-Imagn Images It\u2019s devastating news for one of Canada\u2019s top forwards, but&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":461234,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[433],"tags":[58718,49,48,5718,147058,448,10099,71222,82,13543],"class_list":["post-461233","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nhl","tag-brayden-point","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-injury","tag-julien-brisebois","tag-nhl","tag-nick-suzuki","tag-seth-jarvis","tag-sports","tag-team-canada"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/461233","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=461233"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/461233\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/461234"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=461233"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=461233"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=461233"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}