Can Joey Daccord be Canada’s savior in goal?
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Ryan S. Clark, NHL reporter
SEATTLE — Whether it’s at the 4 Nations Face-Off in February, or another future international tournament, there’s a possibility that Hockey Canada could call upon Seattle Kraken goalie Joey Daccord.
Daccord, who is 10-6-1 with a 2.56 goals-against average and a .912 save percentage, has been floated as an option for Canada ahead of the 4 Nations event. The idea that Daccord could play for Canada is a topic that has raised questions about his eligibility.
It’s also not the first time another nation has inquired about the Massachusetts native’s international status.
The 28-year-old, who was born and grew up in Greater Boston, is an American citizen who also holds Canadian and Swiss citizenship. His parents were born outside of the United States, with his father growing up in Canada and his mother growing up in Switzerland. Daccord told ESPN in early November that he has official documentation from all three nations.
So which team can he represent at the 4 Nations Face-Off — and the 2026 Olympics? Well, it’s a little complicated.
THE INTERNATIONAL ICE HOCKEY FEDERATION, the sport’s international governing body, confirmed to ESPN in an email in late November that the 28-year-old would be eligible to play for Canada if he chooses.
“If Daccord meets the eligibility requirements for a country of which he has citizenship, and has not previously represented a different country, then he would be eligible to choose,” the IIHF wrote in its email to ESPN. “That is applicable to all players with dual citizenship.”
IIHF rules state players with more than two legal citizenships seeking to participate either in an IIHF men’s championships or a men’s Olympic competition must prove they have played in a league competition for more than 16 consecutive months — two hockey seasons — after their 10th birthday for the nation in which they seek eligibility.
Those guidelines also declare that if a men’s player is transferring their citizenship that they must have that approved by the IIHF at least 16 months or 480 days prior to their proposed participation.
Daccord left Arizona State after his junior season and signed a professional contract with the Ottawa Senators. He lived in Canada for two seasons, spending the 2019-20 season with the Sens’ AHL and ECHL affiliates, the Belleville Senators and Brampton Beast, which are both in Canada. He also played the 2020-21 season with Belleville and Ottawa.
He has never represented the U.S. in any capacity at an IIHF-sanctioned event in his career. That means he’s currently eligible to be an option for either nation until he plays a game for one of them at what is considered to be an official IIHF event.
NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly told ESPN in an email Monday that the NHL and the NHL Players Association, as the 4 Nations Face-Off’s organizers, could consider any player’s potential eligibility subject to their “unique facts and circumstances.” Daly said that the league wasn’t aware of Daccord’s exact circumstances because “there has not, to this point, been a need to investigate the reason,” while adding they would “look at all the facts and make an appropriate decision” if that were to change.
Daly was asked if the NHL has any eligibility rules for the 4 Nations Face-Off or if the league was going to use IIHF guidelines. Daly said while the NHL wouldn’t consider itself bound by the IIHF rules, he did say, “I imagine we would focus on a lot of the same factors that the IIHF finds relevant.”
“Nobody has asked me about anything. Nobody has talked to me about anything,” Daccord said in November when asked by ESPN if he’s heard from Hockey Canada. “Switzerland has looked into it, but as far as I know, they were told no because I’ve never played or lived over there.”
Since the upcoming 4 Nations Faceoff is an NHL/NHLPA event that is not sanctioned by the IIHF, Daccord could hypothetically play for the U.S. or Canada and still have the freedom to change his mind ahead of playing in one of those IIHF events.
Daccord told ESPN that the Swiss Ice Hockey Federation, the governing body for the Swiss National Team, has been in conversations with him since he was 17. In the past, Daccord has openly talked about his Swiss heritage as he has the Swiss flag along with the flags of Canada and the U.S. on the backplate of his mask.
The Swiss Federation reached out to him a little more than a year ago to explore the possibility of Daccord playing for them in the 2026 Olympics if he was cleared by the IIHF. Daccord said that he told Switzerland he was open to the idea, but would not commit.
If Daccord had been eligible and agreed to represent Switzerland, he would have joined a nation that’s currently fifth in the IIHF rankings, and has NHL players such as Nico Hischier, Kevin Fiala, Roman Josi, Timo Meier and Nino Niederreiter likely leading the team in 2026.
Would Daccord take the same approach if Hockey Canada reached out about him playing for them?
“I’m not sure. It’s something I’d really have to think about,” Daccord said. “I don’t really know.”
CANADA IS ENTERING the 4 Nations Face-off as the favorite to win the tournament. Led by superstars such as Sidney Crosby, Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar, it’s a roster that has some of the game’s strongest options at defense and forward. But the state of Canada’s goaltending has come under question — especially when compared to other nations.
The goaltenders that Canada could use at the 4 Nations Face-Off include Jordan Binnington, Adin Hill, Darcy Kuemper, Sam Montembeault, Stuart Skinner, Cam Talbot and Logan Thompson. Binnington, Hill, Kuemper, Montembault, Talbot and Thompson have all represented Canada at the IIHF world championships. Montembeault and Talbot each won more than six games in the respective years they helped Canada capture gold.
By comparison, the U.S. has reigning Vezina Trophy winner Connor Hellebuyck (who also won in 2020) as part of a U.S. goaltending group that could include Thatcher Demko, Jake Oettinger or Jeremy Swayman. Demko, who is yet to play this season while recovering from an injury, is a two-time All-Star that was the Vezina runner-up last season, whereas Oettinger is on pace for his fourth straight 30-win season.
Finland is expected to be led by Juuse Saros, a Vezina finalist in 2022, and could also take Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Kevin Lankinen, among others. Sweden could take the trio of Filip Gustavsson, Jacob Markstrom and Linus Ullmark, with the latter winning the Vezina in 2023. Markstrom was also a finalist in 2022.
As for Daccord, his rise has been gradual. A seventh-round pick in 2015, Daccord spent three years with the Senators organization until he was selected in 2020 by the Kraken in the expansion draft. He spent the majority of his first two seasons in the Kraken’s organization playing for their AHL affiliate, and then became a full-time NHL player in the 2023-24 season.
Daccord won 19 games while posting a 2.46 goals-against average and a .916 save percentage in 50 games. He finished sixth in GAA and save percentage among goalies with more than 25 games played. Unfortunately, the Kraken averaged the fourth fewest goals per game that season, which played a role in why they missed the playoffs after reaching the postseason in 2022-23.
The 2024-25 season has been a continuation of what Daccord did last season, with Daccord starting the week with a 5.9 goals saved above expected, according to MoneyPuck. That was 10th in the NHL, whereas Talbot was fifth (10.1), Thompson was ninth (6.5), Hill was 27th (1.9), Binnington was 37th (0.6), Montembeault was 43rd (-0.7) and Skinner was 75th (-8.2).
“I’ve never really been asked to play for a country at any level or any age, so, I’ve never had that situation come up,” Daccord said. “Obviously, it’s an incredible honor to play for your country. I feel blessed and grateful that I have three different nationalities and come from a diverse family background. … I feel strongly about all three nations, and would definitely feel proud to represent any of them on the international level.”
PHILADELPHIA — Philadelphia slugger Kyle Schwarber hit four home runs Thursday night against Atlanta to become the 21st major leaguer and fourth Phillies player to accomplish the feat.
Schwarber was 4-for-6 with a Phillies-record nine RBI in the 19-4 victory. He took the outright National League homer lead with a career-high 49 and moved within one of Seattle’s Cal Raleigh for the major league lead. Schwarber leads the majors with a career-high 119 RBIs.
“It’s pretty cool,” Schwarber said. “It was a fun night, great atmosphere. Wouldn’t want to do it with a better group of guys than we have here.”
Mike Schmidt was the last Philadelphia player to hit four homers in a game, doing so at the Chicago Cubs in April 1976. Schwarber had the third four-homer game of the season, following Eugenio Suárez and Nick Kurtz.
Schwarber’s 49 homers passed Ryan Howard (2008) and Schmidt (1980) for the second most in a season in Phillies history, trailing only Ryan Howard’s 58 in 2006.
“It just cooperated,” said Schwarber, who had entered the game hitless in his last 20 at-bats, by far the longest such streak entering a four-home run game since 1900. “You can do everything right and get out, and you can do everything wrong and get a hit. Got some pitches and put some good swings on it.”
Schwarber started the power surge with a solo shot in the first inning off Cal Quantrill, sending a 2-1 curveball into the right-field seats. Schwarber hit a flyout to center in the second.
After Quantrill was lifted with one out and two runners on base in the fourth, Schwarber greeted lefty Austin Cox by sending a 3-2 curveball over the wall in right for his fourth multihomer game of the season.
With “M-V-P! M-V-P!” chants ringing down from Phillies fans in the fifth, Schwarber launched a three-run drive to left off Cox to put Philadelphia ahead 15-3. In the seventh, Schwarber hit a three-run shot to right off Wander Suero to make it 18-4.
Schwarber popped out in the eighth against Braves third baseman Vidal Brujan.
“I stink against position players,” Schwarber said jokingly. “All you’re trying to do is get a good pitch. I got the pitch. Just popped it up.”
Schwarber, 32, has 333 homers in 11 seasons in the majors primarily with the Cubs and Phillies. He had a previous career high of 47 home runs in 2023 for Philadelphia.
The Associated Press and ESPN Research contributed to this report.
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Jorge Castillo
NEW YORK — In his latest setback, Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez was diagnosed with a fracture in the pinkie finger in his left hand, manager Carlos Mendoza said Thursday.
Alvarez, 23, sustained the injury when he was hit by a pitch on his left hand during a game for Triple-A Syracuse on Wednesday. Mendoza said Alvarez will wait until the inflammation in the finger diminishes — he estimated two or three days — before resuming baseball activities. The third-year catcher was already on the injured list and on rehab assignment because of an ulnar collateral ligament sprain in his right thumb.
“This should be relatively short,” Mendoza said. “But, again, it’s a little bit of a setback compared to what the original plan was. But when you’re talking about you get the news, ‘Oh, he’s got a fracture,’ you’re thinking about the worst-case scenario, but apparently, that’s not the case here. So we just got to wait and see.”
This is Alvarez’s fourth hand injury in the past two years. Last season, he underwent surgery to repair a torn ligament in his right thumb and missed nearly two months. This spring, he fractured his left hamate bone and missed the first month of the regular season.
His recent UCL sprain happened while sliding headfirst into second base Aug. 17. It’s the same thumb that he hurt last year. The UCL sprain will require surgery to heal, but the Mets are hopeful he can postpone the procedure until the offseason to avoid missing the remainder of the season. The surgery requires an eight-week recovery timetable. Instead, doctors cleared him to play as long as he can tolerate the pain in his throwing hand. Tearing it completely, however, would require surgery sooner and end his season. Now, he’s dealing with a fracture in his receiving hand.
“We’re not going to put him in a position where he’s very uncomfortable,” Mendoza said. “As tough as he is, he’s human. So, I think we got to get him to a point where it’s manageable because now we’re talking about the receiving hand, too. But, again, it’s a small fracture and we just got to wait. But it comes down to making sure we’re not putting the player in a position where he’s in danger.”
Alvarez played in his first rehab game for the UCL sprain Wednesday. He went 1-for-2 with a walk and was behind the plate for five innings. His right thumb was not tested by baserunners.
“The ball was coming out fine,” Mendoza said. “Good intensity, good carry. But, again, we got to wait and see when it happens in real action. When he’s got to do the transfer and get the ball in the air as quick as possible and put something on the throw. But, so far, in between innings yesterday, the five innings that he caught, he was fine.”
The UCL sprain interrupted Alvarez’s best stretch of the season, which began with him struggling so badly that the Mets optioned him to Syracuse in late June. Alvarez was batting .236 with three home runs and a .652 OPS in 35 games when he was sent down. He returned a month later to hit .323 with four home runs and a 1.054 OPS in 21 games until his thumb injury.
Without him, the Mets will continue rotating veteran Luis Torrens and rookie Hayden Senger behind the plate.
“It’s been hard for him,” Mendoza said.
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