Ranking the 8 Defensemen Who Should Replace Alex Pietrangelo for Team Canada

As we gear up for the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off, it also means keeping an eye out for players who won’t participate due to injury. This is what happened to Vegas Golden Knights and Canada defenseman Alex Pietrangelo.

The Golden Knights announced on Sunday that the 35-year-old won’t participate in the tournament so he can tend to an ailment and better prepare himself for the stretch run of the regular season and playoffs.

You could consider it a blow to Canada’s roster, but the team is talent-rich on the blue line and has options to replace Pietrangelo.

We have a list of players in mind to join a Canada defense that includes Cale Makar, Josh Morrissey, Colton Parayko, Travis Sanheim, Shea Theodore, and Devon Toews.

We’re going to make it a little spicier by ranking them, and we know you’ll have thoughts to go along with this, so share them in the comments.

When you look at the balance of shot-handedness on the Canada roster among defensemen, it has four left-handed shots and two righties.

It would have been three righties with Pietrangelo, so management may well be looking for a right-handed shooter. But among lefties under consideration, Buffalo’s Owen Power has quietly had a good season.

Power is 10th among Canadian defensemen in scoring this season. At 5-on-5, he’s above 50 percent in shot attempt percentage, but his 46.8 percent expected goals-for isn’t strong.

The Sabres’ lack of success this season helped drag those numbers down, as has a rotation of defense partners while they try to figure out who can best keep up with and unlock more of his best traits.

The chances of Canada picking another left-handed shot are low, especially with many outstanding righthanded candidates, but Power has represented Canada numerous times.

That said, the team is probably also looking for someone with more overall experience and being 22 years old in this kind of tournament probably doesn’t help his case.

Jakob Chychrun is a left-handed shooter who’s having an outstanding season with the Washington Capitals. Asking him to play the left or right side would still work.

The 26-year-old was born in Florida and has dual citizenship, but he has always worn the maple leaf in international competition. He’s sixth among Canadian defensemen in scoring this season, and his 13 goals are second-most among his countrymen behind Cale Makar’s 18.

With his ability to handle the puck and command of the offensive side of the game, he would provide another scoring weapon from the blue line and yet another guy who can facilitate the forwards from the back end.

However, on a Washington team that has been strong all year, Chychrun’s advanced stats are a bit concerning. He’s last among its defensemen with 46.5 percent expected goals-for even though he is slightly above 50 percent in shot attempts-for.

A cross-up like that in the advanced numbers from a guy who has a lefthanded shot—something Canada has a surplus of—doesn’t bode well for his case, but being a point-producing blueliner on a great team can change minds.

There’s no doubt reputation can go a long way when it comes to picking players for an international competition, and Kris Letang’s long career of being an elite puck possessor and point scorer from the right side of the blue line will force his name into the discussion.

The Pittsburgh Penguins have struggled this year, and the 37-year-old’s scoring and role reduction because of Erik Karlsson’s presence on the team has been noticeable the past two seasons.

Letang is 27th among Canadian defensemen in scoring this season with 19 points, but it’s not for a lack of trying. His 100 shots on goal puts him among the top 15 of Canadian blueliners, but having seven goals would seem to indicate he’s been unlucky and/or inaccurate.

However, his lengthy NHL experience and age could be seen as reasons to choose him or to pick someone else. That he’s also from Montréal could be reason enough to pick him, knowing you’ll get the best from him playing for his country in his hometown.

Letang has a righthanded shot and a long history with Sidney Crosby, and those are reasons enough to keep an eye on him to fill out Canada’s blue line.

If there’s one player who has earned more attention and respect in the past few seasons, it’s Brandon Montour of the Seattle Kraken.

His performance the past few seasons with the Florida Panthers and being a key player in helping them win the Stanley Cup last year earned him a huge contract with the Kraken.

We’ve watched the 30-year-old continue his fine form in Seattle by being a fast and forceful puck carrier and eager to jump into the offense at any time.

Watching Montour force the issue offensively in Florida helped make many people wonder how both the Anaheim Ducks and Buffalo Sabres allowed him to get away.

The kind of pressure he can put on opposing teams to keep up with him and defend him as he works deep into the zone could be viewed as a risk for Canada, but having him do that with the cadre of talent it will have upfront could make them difficult to keep up with.

Montour would be a fun pick for Canada, but fun doesn’t always jive with being ultra-serious about winning.

Watching Evan Bouchard break out with the Edmonton Oilers has been thrilling.

His shot and puck-moving ability are outstanding, and he’s given an already deep Oilers offense another weapon to work with. But he’s got the advantage of doing so from the back end.

Last season was a monster one for the 25-year-old as he set career highs in goals (18), assists (64) and points (82) and then had 32 points in the playoffs as he helped Edmonton reach Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final.

Playing with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl has its benefits, but players also have to do their own work and Bouchard has done that.

His advanced numbers with Edmonton, like most every player there, are out of this world thanks to the team’s outstanding offense. But, in his pairing with Mattias Ekholm, he’s clearly the guy meant to push the offense and not sweat out the defensive side of things.

That kind of consideration probably isn’t too necessary on a stacked Canada roster, but it also doesn’t want to run out a lot of similarly styled players either.

Bouchard would be a luxury on Canada’s roster given the presence of Makar, Morrissey and Theodore as puck-moving offensive threats, but who doesn’t love having even more of what you’ve already got?

If there’s one defenseman among the candidates for Canada who is underappreciated, it’s MacKenzie Weegar of the Calgary Flames.

The 31-year-old can move the puck and play physically. And after he landed with the Flames, the offensive game he had in Florida came with him and continued to evolve.

He’s a 5-on-5 shot attempt generator with a 54.5 percent shot attempt-for when he’s on the ice. Although his expected goals-for percent is slightly under 50, the kind of volume he helps generate is the kind of thing that would play extremely well on the Canadian roster.

The case for adding Weegar to Team Canada from those perspectives is a good one. Heck, just consider how he is doing all of this and spurring the Flames into a playoff race they were not expected to be anywhere near before the season.

His name may not carry the kind of cachet of Kris Letang, Dougie Hamilton or Drew Doughty, but he’s the kind of guy who could make a household name for himself with a big performance for Canada.

We’re putting Los Angeles Kings defenseman Drew Doughty second in our rankings alongside a big asterisk.

The 35-year-old has yet to play this season after breaking his ankle in a preseason game against Vegas in September, but his return is imminent. And if he’s able to get a few games in before the 4 Nations Face-Off begins on February 12, he’s almost certainly going to be selected.

Doughty’s long history in the league of being an elite puck mover, shooter and all-around offensive star while also delivering physical play and a ferocious competitive nature would have made him an automatic selection to the team had he not been hurt.

This is all about timing and comfort, though, and if he’s unable to get enough games before the tournament or his ankle doesn’t feel strong enough, adding him to the roster probably wouldn’t be the best call for his health, Canada and the Kings.

Dougie Hamilton’s case to replace Pietrangelo is an easy one to make.

The 31-year-old is fifth in points among Canadian defensemen, and of the guys in front of him, only Evan Bouchard has more and isn’t on the roster.

Hamilton is the class of the New Jersey Devils defense and, as proved last season, they’re much worse off when he’s out of the lineup.

The way Hamilton controls the puck and leads the play up the ice along with his even-keeled demeanor and decision-making would make him an ideal partner for any of the lefthanded defensemen on the Canada roster.

He would pair well with any of Shea Theodore, Josh Morrissey, Devon Toews or Travis Sanheim and not miss a beat while also being able to enhance their performance as well.

Being the kind of complementary player who can also lead the way himself makes Hamilton an immensely valuable player. And should the Canadians want to run two defensemen on the power play, he’s able to crush it there as well.

Hamilton may not be a flashy player, but he gets it done in such a consistent way that he’s the kind of business-like player Canada generally goes for to exert dominance.

That said, if Drew Doughty is healthy enough and ready to play, all this may have been said for naught.