MILAN — Canada’s Josh Morrissey will miss his third consecutive game of the Winter Olympics on Wednesday versus Czechia, while Brad Marchand is ready to return to action.
Morrissey and the banged-up Sam Bennett, who missed Tuesday’s hour-long practice due to maintenance, skated Wednesday morning at the Milano Santaguilia Arena practice rink alongside third-string goalie Darcy Kuemper.
All three will be scratched for Canada’s win-or-go-home quarterfinal (10:40 a.m. ET / 7:40 a.m. PT, CBC Gem, Sportsnet+).
The Morrissey scratch comes as a mild surprise as the top-four defenceman was a full participant Tuesday with partner Colton Parayko and looked to be game-ready.
“Just taking it day by day and trying to get ready for the rest of the tournament best I can,” Morrissey said.
“Try and be a great teammate in any way you can. Every single guy here is a fantastic hockey player. So, you try to watch the game yourself to see what the team is doing with systems and to stay sharp.”
Canada’s Nathan MacKinnon, who took two hard hits in Sunday’s 10-2 win over France (one to the chin, the other to the knee), also took a maintenance day Tuesday but will suit up Wednesday.
Coach Jon Cooper said he had “zero concern” over MacKinnon’s readiness to play, and the star forward was spotted sightseeing with captain and friend Sidney Crosby Tuesday night:
Marchand, 37, has been dealing with a nagging but undisclosed injury that dates back prior to the tournament and has not played since last week’s opener.
“That’s part of the reason Marchy hasn’t played here for a bit — to make sure he was an option for us (in the knockout stage),” Cooper said.
Here is how Team Canada’s quarterfinal lineup projects to look as they catch the underdog Czechs on a back-to-back:
Celebrini – McDavid – Wilson
Hagel – MacKinnon – Suzuki
Marner – Crosby – Stone
Marchand – Horvat – Reinhart
