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In Team Canada’s 3-1 loss to Team USA at the 4 Nations Face-Off, Connor McDavid scored the lone goal but was mostly neutralized by strong U.S. defense. The game featured intense physical play, with three fights early on. Earlier, Canada won 4-3 in overtime against Sweden and later beat Finland 5-3.

Frankie Corrado on “biggest error” in Team Canada’s roster

Jon Cooper experimented with different line combinations for Connor McDavid during the 4 Nations Face-Off. Initially, McDavid played with Mitch Marner, but against Team USA, Cooper tried McDavid with Nathan MacKinnon and Sidney Crosby. Despite these efforts, Canada lost 3-1 to the U.S.

Frankie Corrado argued that Team Canada’s offense lacked chemistry due to the absence of Zach Hyman, McDavid’s main playmaker with the Oilers.

“I think the biggest error is not having Zach Hyman on the team,” Corrado said. “Think about, like you need Connor McDavid to be the best player in the world to play like he plays on the Edmonton Oilers. And you have his wingman who has it figured out like the guy knows it. You don’t have to have this feeling-out process.”

“He (McDavid) doesn’t have someone to work off of as easily. Like we’ve seen Marner, we’ve seen Reinhart, we’ve seen Jon Cooper go to a line with MacKinnon, Crosby, McDavid, like we’ve seen a few different combinations now, but you had the guy (Hyman) ready-made,”Corrado continued.

“I understand at the start of the season, he wasn’t scoring, shooting percentage, all that kind of stuff, guess what? Not necessarily a goal scorer, but he knows how to play with McDavid,” Cooper added.

Zach Hyman struggled early in the season with just 8 points in 20 games, but has since rebounded with 24 points and 16 goals in 30 games. His strong chemistry with McDavid could have improved Team Canada’s performance in the 4 Nations Face-Off.