Canada’s Marchand, Morrissey to sit against Switzerland; Jarvis, Sanheim to make debuts
Canada will be without forward Brad Marchand and defenseman Josh Morrissey as the team takes to the ice against Switzerland in men’s Olympic hockey action at 3:10 PM ET.
The news was confirmed by the IIHF’s official lineup sheet, released before 2:00 PM ET.
Both Brad Marchand and Josh Morrissey are listed as scratches for Canada today against Switzerland. Jordan Binnington also went dress. #Olympics
Morrissey left Canada’s tournament opener on Thursday against Czechia, a 5-0 victory for the squad. The status of Morrissey’s injury is unclear, but if he is unable to return, his roster spot can not be replaced after Canada officially registered 25 players on Feb. 10.
Marchand’s reason for exclusion is unknown at this time. The 37-year-old had one assist in 9:29 of play in Canada’s bottom-six in his first Olympic appearance.
Carolina’s Seth Jarvis will make his Olympic debut, playing alongside Bo Horvat and Sam Reinhart on Canada’s third line. The other three forward lines will remain untouched, with Sam Bennett serving as the 13th forward. Defenseman Travis Sanheim, meanwhile, will take Morrissey’s place as the seventh defenseman.
Washington Capitals goaltender Logan Thompson is expected to be the starter for Canada, with Darcy Kuemper set to be the backup. Neither has played in an Olympic game in their careers. Neither goalie was part of Canada’s 4 Nations Face-Off roster, which helped put them behind Jordan Binnington on the Olympic depth chart heading into the tournament. Binnington is expected to regain his starter status at some point in the tournament.
Switzerland is currently the second-highest rated team in the IIHF rankings thanks to two straight silvers. A gold medal has alluded them, but they’re not afraid of anyone. Switzerland will play Canada on Friday, and while the Canadians are definitely the favorites, the Swiss have won three of the past four meetings between them at the World Championship.
Canada will get Saturday off before finishing its Olympic preliminary round action against France on Sunday.