Big rumor chart update coming this afternoon as the deadline is only 39 days away.

So Vegas Knight defenseman Alex Pietrangelo has announced he will not be playing in the Four Nations tournament because of a nagging injury… However, last night he returned to the Vegas lineup, which stirred up all sorts of conversation within the NHL.

Alex is not the only NHL player playing with a nagging injury. We see this every year as a team gets knocked out and we learn about this guy or that guy needing shoulder surgery, knee surgery, etc.

However, he is the first to say he’s going to choose his team’s success over the success of his country in the tournament … Four Nations is an NHL event, if this were the Olympics, would he be making the same decision?

The NHL doesn’t take lightly to players skipping out on their events as we have seen when players opt out of the All-Star game in the past. Of course, this tournament promises to be a lot more physical and intense than an All-Star game, and it isn’t just one game; it’s several… at least three, up to four games

When discussing this, instantly the name that comes up right away here is Auston Matthews in Toronto.. Matthews is battling a nagging injury as well but is very much looking forward to representing the USA in this tournament. NHL players love to play country versus country and historically go all out in tournaments like the Canada Cup or the World Cup in the past. There is every reason to think that this tournament could land a few players injured.

What is your opinion on this decision by Alex Pietrangelo?

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