Vancouver Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet officially confirmed that captain Quinn Hughes won’t suit up against the Toronto Maple Leafs this afternoon.

The Canucks did not hold a morning skate this morning, so information was limited, but Hughes has been out since suffering what’s believed to be an oblique injury in the Canucks’ game against the Dallas Stars just over a week ago. Hughes left that game but returned and has been doing his best to play through this latest injury. Hughes took warmup for the Canucks’ game against the Detroit Red Wings last Sunday before ultimately deciding he couldn’t go after a long conversation with the trainer at the bench.

Canucks GM Patrik Allvin told Sportsnet’s Iain MacIntyre that the club was hopeful Hughes would be able to suit up for today’s game against the Leafs. Allvin added that it will be Hughes’s decision as to whether or not he will suit up for Team USA at the 4 Nations Face-Off.

Hughes was one of the first players named to Team USA’s roster and is undoubtedly the best blueliner on a strong American team that will look to get familiar with each other before heading off to the 2026 Winter Olympics around this time next year.

There has not been any clarification yet on that, but we will be sure to keep you posted if and when the captain makes a decision. Team USA is set to face off against Finland for both teams’ first game of the tournament on Thursday, February 13th.

If Hughes opts out of the tournament, his next game back would come two weeks from now, when the Canucks travel to Vegas to take on the Golden Knights on February 22nd.

So far, the Canucks are 2-0-1 over the three games they’ve had to play without their captain. Check out our full preview of tonight’s game by clicking here!