Suzuki's versatility punches his Olympic ticket while Canadiens teammates wait

SUNRISE, Fla. — Nick Suzuki played like a man possessed, but also like one who appeared to be letting go of months worth of tension that had finally begun to interfere with his game just a few weeks ago.

That tension was at its peak on Sunday, in Tampa, where Suzuki gripped his stick too tight in a 5-4 shootout loss to the Lightning for his Montreal Canadiens. It was just the eighth time this season he’d been held off the scoresheet, but it was also the second time in three weeks he had played below his own standard in front of Jon Cooper — the coach of the Lightning, sure, but also the coach of the team that Suzuki’s always dreamed of playing for.

A day later, from the Florida Panthers’ practice facility in Fort Lauderdale, the London, Ont., native opened up about the long wait for the call to play for Canada’s Olympic team.

“Definitely, there’s been some anxiety about it,” Suzuki said. “You don’t play the best game and feel like you’ve maybe played your way off the team, you play a good game and feel like you did something good to make the team.”

On Tuesday, Suzuki just played.

He played knowing the Olympic decision had already been made. He played assured he had already done all he could to influence those in charge of the decision. And he played strong and free against the Panthers, scoring the game-tying goal with 1:22 remaining before potting the winner to pass Howie Morenz for first all-time in overtime points (19) among Canadiens players.

Those goals were Suzuki’s 31^st and 32^nd of the calendar year. They were his 96^th and 97^th points since Jan. 1, making him the third-highest scoring Canadian player over the last 12 months and sixth-highest scoring player in the world over that same period. They were scored in a game that saw him lead both teams in shots and shot attempts, a game that saw him play almost 23 minutes, a game which he impacted on the penalty kill, at five-on-five and on the power play, a game in which he won 55 per cent of the 20 faceoffs he took, and a game that, in other words, was just like most of the ones he played in 2025.

Stacking up all those performances earned Suzuki the call on Wednesday. He had made it impossible for Team Canada to leave him at home this time.

They left Suzuki on his couch for the games they played at the 4 Nations Face-Off last February. The captain of the Canadiens was at home in Montreal, watching his Canadian cohorts occupy his dressing room and the ice sheet he’s starred on at the Bell Centre since 2019.

It lit a fire under Suzuki.

He then used it to put the Canadiens on his back and carry them to an improbable playoff berth with 15 goals and 37 points over the final 26 games of last season. He outscored every Canadian not named Robert Thomas and, in the process, also displayed the completeness that finally made him undeniable to Team Canada.

“I just tried to show that I could do anything that they ask of me to do, whether that’s be a 13^th, 14^th forward, just penalty kill, shut-down line,” Suzuki said. “I feel like I can do all of that and show my offensive ability when I can, and I feel like I can produce with the best of them.

“They want to build a hockey team. They want role players, guys that can do different things. Not everyone is going to be able to play the same amount of minutes as they usually do and you have to be able to contribute in different ways if you’re asked to do different things. I feel I can do whatever they want me to do, so I feel like I’m a good piece in that.”

Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis referred to Suzuki as a Swiss Army Knife moments before Suzuki said that.

The former Olympian, who won a gold medal with Canada at the 2014 Sochi Games, knows what the Program of Excellence looks for in a player. At the beginning of the month, he said, “If you lack little details, you have to be a top-10 player in the world,” and over the last 12 months, he’d consistently highlighted the details that made Suzuki one of the best and most versatile players in the world.

Suzuki was still that over the last three weeks, even if he wasn’t particularly satisfied with his game. In 10 games bookended by the 6-1 loss the Canadiens suffered to the Lightning on Dec. 9 and Sunday’s loss in Tampa, Suzuki produced three goals and 10 points while maintaining an even rating. He did that despite producing only five of those points at even-strength, and he did it while doing what he always does — matching up against the best players in the world. Only this time he did it over the most charged portion of Montreal’s schedule to date, and with the Olympic decision hanging over his head.

Now that it’s fallen in his favour, the quest for Suzuki to play his way up the lineup begins.

Canadiens teammate Juraj Slafkovsky will be at the top of Slovakia’s. The 21-year-old was already assured of that before piecing together his most dominant stretch as an NHLer.

Oliver Kapanen hasn’t been in the league for nearly as long, but he ranks first among rookies in goals (seven), fourth among them in points (20), and he feels he’s done all he can to follow in his uncle Sammy’s footsteps with Team Finland.

“I think I’ve been playing good here and doing my thing,” Kapanen told Sportsnet on Monday. “I know there’s a couple of injuries right now, so there could be spots open.”

Sources informed us there’d have likely been one for him even if Aleksander Barkov and Patrik Laine were both healthy enough to go to Milan.

Meanwhile, it might take an injury to a Team USA forward for Cole Caufield to get there.

The incredible goal Caufield scored in Tuesday’s game was his 37^th of 2025. He put up 75 points, but also had a +21 rating over 84 games to show to what end his entire game has evolved since being left off the 4 Nations roster.

Caufield could’ve easily been the one to deliver the one goal the Americans lost by in the final had he been on that team, but even he knows his ability to make that shot in the most pressure-packed moment might not be enough to get him to the Olympics.

“At the end of the day, I’m still going to cheer for the team regardless,” Caufield told Sportsnet on Monday. “You want the best for those guys. If they don’t pick you, you still want them to win to know that they picked the right team. At the end of the day, it’s not the end of the world, and it’s not going to stop me from competing.”

It shouldn’t, because there are 18-20 games to play between now and the Olympic break and Caufield could — and should — inevitably go if one or two American forwards named to the team get injured. The Americans will name their roster on Firday.

Perhaps Noah Dobson or Mike Matheson will get a call to replace one or two of the eight defencemen going to Milan for Team Canada if the injury bug hits their blue line. We’re not sure Lane Hutson will get the call if one or two American defencemen suffer injuries between Friday’s announcement and the tournament, but he should.

Caufield was among many making the case for Hutson to make it regardless.

“I would just say watch every single one of his shifts,” Caufield said. “His compete level, his motor, his energy, his skill is all second to none, and I haven’t seen too many players in the league who bring that every shift. What he’s able to do for our team is every time he’s on the ice, I think we have the puck. And if we don’t, he’s getting it back and he’s going to work his ass off to get it back. It’s definitely been a fun year for him, and he’s only going to get better.”

It's unquestionable given how much Hutson has already improved from a rookie season that saw him make history and capture the Calder Trophy.

The 21-year-old has five goals and 38 points in 39 games so far this season. No defenceman in hockey has more than his 33 assists, and only Cale Makar and Zach Werenski have produced more than his 78 points since the beginning of 2025.

As Caufield said, Hutson has also shown he’s much more than just an offensive defenceman, and his +16 rating through 2025 is just scratching the surface of proof to that end.

Whether Hutson ends up in Milan or not, he’s destined for great things with Team USA in the future.

Suzuki’s time with Canada is now.