The Vegas Golden Knights were particularly careful holding Alex Pietrangelo out of the 4 Nations Face-Off. Despite his selection to Team Canada, he bowed out due to an “ailment.” Vegas, however, could not get out of the first game without dealing with an injury. The Golden Knights announced that Shea Theodore will be out week-to-week with an upper-body injury after Wednesday's game.

“Shea Theodore is expected to be out week-to-week due to the upper-body injury he sustained at the 4 Nations Face-Off,” they announced on their official social media account.

Theodore went down the tunnel with Canada up 2-0 in the second period. He collided awkwardly with Sweden forward Adrian Kempe and did not return for the game. Canada played the rest of the game with five defensemen and allowed Sweden to make a furious comeback before winning in overtime.

The Golden Knights have dealt with a tremendous amount of injuries during their competitive window since 2017. Theodore has been there all along and had injury issues the last two seasons. He played 53 games in 2022-23, and 47 last year before suiting up in 55 of 56 coming into the 4 Nations Face-Off. Both Vegas and Canada must replace Theodore quickly, which is no small task. Where do both squads go from here?

How Canada and Golden Knights can replace Shea Theodore

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With the Golden Knights flying in the first half of the season, they are a mortal lock to make the NHL playoffs. With 72 points in 56 games, they have a 99.8% chance of making the playoffs, per Moneypuck. They have used 24-year-old Kaeden Korczak as an injury replacement this season and should give him a chance when they get back from the break.

Putting Theodore's $5.2 million cap hit on long-term injured reserve would open up some options for the Golden Knights at the trade deadline. This is a tool they've used before, most notably with Mark Stone last year, and could do again with Theodore. But if Korczak is serviceable, they could hold onto their assets and hope Theodore is back for the playoffs.

Team Canada is back in action on Saturday, hosting Team USA in Montreal in what should be a raucous environment. Each team brought seven defensemen to account for potential injuries, so Flyers defender Travis Sanheim will play Saturday.

TSN's Chris Johnston reported that Canada can inform an NHL player that they are “next up.” But, they cannot put that player on the roster until another injury leaves them with only five players.