Brady Tkachuk exits loss, adds to U.S. injuries
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Greg Wyshynski
BOSTON — Team USA downplayed concerns about a handful of key injuries ahead of its 4 Nations Face-Off championship game against Canada on Thursday.
The United States lost 2-1 to Sweden on Monday night, playing with a diminished lineup in a game that had no bearing on the tournament. Canada’s victory over Finland in regulation earlier in the day clinched its spot in the final and a rematch against the Americans, who won a brutal battle with the Canadians in Montreal on Saturday by a score of 3-1.
The 4 Nations final is Thursday night at TD Garden.
Team USA forwards Matthew Tkachuk and Auston Matthews as well as defenseman Charlie McAvoy sat out against Sweden out of injury precaution. The U.S. inserted New York Rangers forward Chris Kreider and Ottawa Senators defenseman Jake Sanderson into its lineup against Sweden, playing with 17 skaters (11 forwards, 6 defensemen). Kreider scored the lone goal for the Americans in the loss.
The thin lineup got even thinner when forward Brady Tkachuk was hurt in the first period and did not return due to a lower-body injury. Tkachuk, who also plays for Senators, lost an edge while driving to the Sweden net in the first period and slammed his side into the goal cage just 7:37 into the game. He went back to the bench in discomfort and eventually left for the trainers room.
He returned to the ice for a 14-second shift later in the period but did not come back out with the team for the second period. USA Hockey announced he would not return.
U.S. coach Mike Sullivan said after the game that Tkachuk was held out for “precautionary reasons” and had no immediate update on his injury.
“We’ll see how it responds,” Sullivan added, “but I don’t anticipate it being an issue.”
While Matthew Tkachuk sat out against Sweden, he is expected to play Thursday versus Canada.
The Tkachuk brothers helped set the tone for Saturday’s victory against Canada with two fights within the first three seconds. They play on either side of center Jack Eichel to form one of the more effective U.S. scoring lines. Sullivan said that McAvoy and Matthews were out on Monday with upper-body injuries and that Matthews was the more “nicked up” of the two. The coach anticipated having more information on all four injured players Tuesday. All that said, The Boston Globe, citing two sources, reported that McAvoy was admitted to Massachusetts General Hospital on Monday night for undisclosed reasons.
Amid all of the news, the U.S. players were confident that their teammates would be “good to go” against Canada.
“I mean, I’m not a doctor. But I’m sure a lot of those guys will be playing on Thursday,” center Jack Hughes of the New Jersey Devils said. “Guys are hungry for this game and really excited.”
Eichel also was optimistic.
“No, we’ll be good to go. We get two days here, and we will take advantage of our time and get guys healthy and be ready to go on Thursday,” he said.
The lineup absences meant some American players were tasked with higher ice time against Sweden, which won its first game of the tournament. Eichel (22:11), winger Jake Guentzel (23:36) and defenseman Zach Werenski (24:08) played their highest minutes of the tournament.
“Obviously, it’s tough. We start the game with 11 forwards and then you lose another guy and a key player on our team. It’s never easy,” Eichel said. “You don’t want to see anyone go out, but I give the guys credit. We had chances. We just weren’t able to bury them.”
Teams that have multiple injury absences at forward or on defense during the 4 Nations tournament are allowed to call up a player not currently on the roster as a replacement. Team Canada did this when it lost defenseman Shea Theodore for the tourney after an injury and when defenseman Cale Makar couldn’t play on Saturday, bringing on Dallas Stars defenseman Thomas Harley to face the U.S.
Sullivan wouldn’t rule out using that protocol but seemed optimistic that the Americans wouldn’t need to utilize an injury replacement player against Canada on Thursday.
“We’re hopeful we’re going to get some of these guys back. I would anticipate we would. We’ll have to wait and see how things play out here over the next day or so,” he said. “Obviously, there will be contingency planning in the event that we need people.”
The 2025 MLB All-Star Home Run Derby is fast approaching — and the field is set.
Braves hometown hero Ronald Acuna Jr. became the first player to commit to the event, which will be held at Truist Park in Atlanta on July 14 (8 p.m. ET on ESPN). He was followed by MLB home run leader Cal Raleigh of the Seattle Mariners, James Wood of the Washington Nationals, Byron Buxton of the Minnesota Twins, Oneil Cruz of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Junior Caminero of the Tampa Bay Rays, Brent Rooker of the Athletics and Jazz Chisholm Jr. of the New York Yankees.
On Friday, however, Acuna was replaced by teammate Matt Olson.
With all the entrants announced, let’s break down their chances at taking home this year’s Derby prize.
Full All-Star Game coverage: How to watch, schedule, rosters, more
2025 home runs: 17 | Longest: 434 feet
Why he could win: Olson is a late replacement for Acuna as the home team’s representative at this year’s Derby. Apart from being the Braves’ first baseman, however, Olson also was born in Atlanta and grew up a Braves fan, giving him some extra motivation. The left-handed slugger led the majors in home runs in 2023 — his 54 round-trippers that season also set a franchise record — and he remains among the best in the game when it comes to exit velo and hard-hit rate.
Why he might not: The home-field advantage can also be a detriment if a player gets too hyped up in the first round. See Julio Rodriguez in Seattle in 2023, when he had a monster first round, with 41 home runs, but then tired out in the second round.
2025 home runs: 36 | Longest: 440 feet
Why he could win: It’s the season of Cal! The Mariners’ catcher is having one of the greatest slugging first halves in MLB history, as he’s been crushing mistakes all season . His easy raw power might be tailor-made for the Derby — he ranks in the 87th percentile in average exit velocity and delivers the ball, on average, at the optimal home run launch angle of 23 degrees. His calm demeanor might also be perfect for the contest as he won’t get too amped up.
Why he might not: He’s a catcher — and one who has carried a heavy workload, playing in all but one game this season. This contest is as much about stamina as anything, and whether Raleigh can carry his power through three rounds would be a concern. No catcher has ever won the Derby, with only Ivan Rodriguez back in 2005 even reaching the finals.
2025 home runs: 24 | Longest: 451 feet
Why he could win: He’s big, he’s strong, he’s young, he’s awesome, he might or might not be able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. This is the perfect opportunity for Wood to show his talent on the national stage, and he wouldn’t be the first young player to star in the Derby. He ranks in the 97th percentile in average exit velocity and 99th percentile in hard-hit rate, so he can still muscle the ball out in BP even if he slightly mishits it. His long arms might be viewed as a detriment, but remember the similarly tall Aaron Judge won in 2017.
Why he might not: His natural swing isn’t a pure uppercut — he has a pretty low average launch angle of just 6.2 degrees — so we’ll see how that plays in a rapid-fire session. In real games, his power is primarily to the opposite field, but in a Home Run Derby you can get more cheapies pulling the ball down the line.
2025 home runs: 20 | Longest: 479 feet
Why he could win: Buxton’s raw power remains as impressive as nearly any hitter in the game. He crushed a 479-foot home run earlier this season and has four others of at least 425 feet. Indeed, his “no doubter” percentage — home runs that would be out of all 30 parks based on distance — is 75%, the highest in the majors among players with more than a dozen home runs. His bat speed ranks in the 89th percentile. In other words, two tools that could translate to a BP lightning show.
Why he might not: Buxton is 31 and the Home Run Derby feels a little more like a younger man’s competition. Teoscar Hernandez did win last year at age 31, but before that, the last winner older than 29 was David Ortiz in 2010, and that was under much different rules than are used now.
2025 home runs: 16 | Longest: 463 feet
Why he could win: If you drew up a short list of players everyone wants to see in the Home Run Derby, Cruz would be near the top. He has the hardest-hit ball of the 2025 season, and the hardest ever tracked by Statcast, a 432-foot missile of a home run with an exit velocity of 122.9 mph. He also crushed a 463-foot home run in Anaheim that soared way beyond the trees in center field. With his elite bat speed — 100th percentile — Cruz has the ability to awe the crowd with a potentially all-time performance.
Why he might not: Like all first-time contestants, can he stay within himself and not get too caught up in the moment? He has a long swing, which will result in some huge blasts, but might not be the most efficient for a contest like this one, where the more swings a hitter can get in before the clock expires, the better.
2025 home runs: 23 | Longest: 425 feet
Why he could win: Although Caminero was one of the most hyped prospects entering 2024, everyone kind of forgot about him heading into this season since he didn’t immediately rip apart the majors as a rookie. In his first full season, however, he has showed off his big-time raw power — giving him a chance to become just the third player to reach 40 home runs in his age-21 season. He has perhaps the quickest bat in the majors, ranking in the 100th percentile in bat speed, and his top exit velocity ranks in the top 15. That could translate to a barrage of home runs.
Why he might not: In game action, Caminero does hit the ball on the ground quite often — in fact, he’s on pace to break Jim Rice’s record for double plays grounded into in a season. If he gets out of rhythm, that could lead to a lot of low line drives during the Derby instead of fly balls that clear the fences.
2025 home runs: 19 | Longest: 440 feet
Why he could win: The Athletics slugger has been one of the top power hitters in the majors for three seasons now and is on his way to a third straight 30-homer season. Rooker has plus bat speed and raw power, but his biggest strength is an optimal average launch angle (19 degrees in 2024, 15 degrees this season) that translates to home runs in game action. That natural swing could be picture perfect for the Home Run Derby. He also wasn’t shy about saying he wanted to participate — and maybe that bodes well for his chances.
Why he might not: Rooker might not have quite the same raw power as some of the other competitors, as he has just one home run longer than 425 feet in 2025. But that’s a little nitpicky, as 11 of his home runs have still gone 400-plus feet. He competed in the college home run derby in Omaha while at Mississippi State in 2016 and finished fourth.
2025 home runs: 17 | Longest: 442 feet
Why he could win: Chisholm might not be the most obvious name to participate, given his career high of 24 home runs, but he has belted 17 already in 2025 in his first 61 games after missing some time with an injury. He ranks among the MLB leaders in a couple of home run-related categories, ranking in the 96th percentile in expected slugging percentage and 98th percentile in barrel rate. His raw power might not match that of the other participants, but he’s a dead-pull hitter who has increased his launch angle this season, which might translate well to the Derby, even if he won’t be the guy hitting the longest home runs.
Why he might not: Most of the guys who have won this have been big, powerful sluggers. Chisholm is listed at 5-foot-11, 184 pounds, and you have to go back to Miguel Tejada in 2004 to find the last player under 6 foot to win.
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