Fantasy Hockey Four Nations Roster Updates: Sidney Crosby will Play, while Quinn Hughes and Rasmus Ristolainen are Out

Today, we are going to discuss the last roster changes for the Four Nations Face-Off as the final rosters have been submitted and all players have flown into Montreal and participated in the practice skates. 

Games start Wednesday and the schedule is as follows:

Schedule

Bell Centre, Montreal

Wednesday, February 12: Canada vs. Sweden at 8 p.m. ET

Thursday, February 13: USA vs. Finland at 8 p.m. ET

Saturday, February 15: Finland vs. Sweden, at 1 p.m. ET; USA vs. Canada, 8 p.m. ET

TD Garden, Boston

Monday, February 17: Canada vs. Finland at 1 p.m. ET and Sweden vs. USA at 8 p.m. ET

Thursday, February 20: Championship game at 8 p.m. ET

Team Canada

Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins is going to play in the Four Nations Face-Off! Great news for Team Canada, and great news for Crosby owners!

In an interview with the Canadian Press covered by CBC, Crosby is still considered day-to-day, but got the green light by doctors and the coaching staff.

To reiterate how important this is to Team Canada from my player spotlight article covering Sid's initial captaincy announcement, he is the heart of this team. He is the face of Canadian Hockey. He has been there, done that, and hopes to do it again.

From a fantasy perspective, it's also a sigh of relief that his elbow injury is not serious. He should gain some momentum playing best-on-best hockey again for the first time in over a decade. 

This is the competitive hockey that is in Crosby's veins, and an environment where he is the most clutch, and thrives in. Make no mistake, Crosby lives to compete, and is passionate about representing Team Canada.

On the season, Crosby has 17 goals, 41 assists, 17 powerplay points in 55 games played. He also has 156 shots on goal, 51 hits, and 31 blocked shots.

Hopefully we see Canada's captain play in the first game, but if he needs one more game to recover I would not worry, as he will for sure see gametime during this tournament and his morning skate today went well.

Team USA

Quinn Hughes of the Vancouver Canucks has pulled out of the Four Nations Face-Off of his own accord. As per Sportsnet, Hughes has opted to rest his lower body/oblique injury and feels responsible as the captain of the Canucks to be the best he can be for his own hockey club.

Hughes did note that he struggled on what to do, and that the Canucks left the decision solely up to him. Pat Brisson, Hughes' agent, was noted saying Hughes' maturity for a 25-year-old is unmatched.

Hughes has 14 goals, 45 assists, and 22 powerplay points in 47 games played. He also has 136 shots on goal, seven hits, and 44 blocked shots.

As I predicted in my Team USA article, Jake Sanderson of the Ottawa Senators will be taking his place.

Sanderson has five goals, 30 assists, and 20 powerplay points in 55 games played. He also has 126 shots on goal, 30 hits, and 117 blocked shots.

The Senators blueliner does bring a bit more grit to his game than Hughes. While more of an elite player than a franchise player, Sanderson adds value with the big minutes he eats in Ottawa, and he's willing to put his body on the line blocking shots.

His style of play does have more of a fit with the rest of the defensemen that Team USA brings, but this does not take away from his skill level. He is a fine replacement, and even if he is the odd man out as the seventh defensemen on the team, he is easily serviceable and brings the ability to step into any role necessary.

Team Finland

Rasmus Ristolainen of the Philadelphia Flyers is out due to an upper body injury. Unfortunately for Team Finland, this is the third defensemen who has been ruled out of the Four Nations Face-Off. The other two being Miro Heiskanen and Jani Hakanpaa. Bad, bad news for Team Finland.

Ristolainen has two goals, 13 assists, and two powerplay points in 54 games played. He also has 74 shots on goal, 83 hits, and 85 blocked shots.

Team Finland will most certainly miss Ristolainen's physical play, his ability to block shots, and this being their third defender out. Their blueline is in absolute shambles.

Nikolas Matinpalo of the Ottawa Senators gets the call up. The second Senator getting a shoulder tap to partake in the Four Nations Face-Off, Matinpalo is only a part time NHL player. 

He has split his time this year between the NHL and AHL, and has only 18 games played in the big league.

Matinpalo has zero goals, zero assists, zero powerplay points, and has 25 shots on goal, eight hits, and 10 blocked shots in his NHL time this year.

He is a far cry from Ristolainen, but this is the opportunity of a lifetime for Matinpalo. Watch for him to either get buried and remain on the bench as the seventh defender, or... Will he seize everything he ever wanted, in one moment? Will he capture it, or just let it slip?

Final Thoughts

If Team Finland hadn't already been last in my predictions, they would be now. They've taken another big hit to their blueline, and things look bleak there.

Team USA, while on the surface looks weaker, is still going to be just fine. Sanderson isn't nearly the playmaker or have the hands or hockey sense that Hughes does, but Sanderson is still an elite defender who just got an opportunity to expand his growth and put his mark on the international scene.

Team Canada got the biggest win here, in having the captain remain on the roster. It was a bit touch and go the past week, waiting patiently for a decision to be made. Making matters worse was how secretive Crosby was in the media surrounding his injury, but you can breathe a sigh of relief that he got the green light to play. I had some discussions this morning leaning towards him playing as I knew he had flown with the team to Montreal, and that was then confirmed.

I think the darkhorse winner here is the Ottawa Senators. They now get to showcase two additional players, who are at two different points in their career. Sanderson who has solidified himself as their top defenseman, dethroning Thomas Chabot, and Matinpalo who has essentially been thrown to center stage by Mekhi Phifer, who is hoping he doesn't choke.