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Canada’s practice reveals projected lines versus U.S.

Ice Hockey - Winter Olympics Day 7 - Canada v Austria

SOCHI, RUSSIA - FEBRUARY 14: Matt Duchene #9 of Canada gets checked by Gerhard Unterlugguer #4 of Austria during the Men’s Ice Hockey Preliminary Round Group B game on day seven of the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics at Bolshoy Ice Dome on February 14, 2014 in Sochi, Russia.

Bruce Bennett

Canada had no choice but to make an adjustment after John Tavares was knocked out of the Olympics due to a knee injury. However, Red Wings coach Mike Babcock chose to keep the alterations to a minimum.

With that in mind, Matt Duchene will draw back into the lineup and take Tavares’ spot as the center of a fourth line that also includes Rick Nash and Patrick Sharp.

“Johnny’s been playing great for us, and hopefully he has a speedy recovery and it’s not too serious,” Duchene told the Canadian Press. “But it’s a big opportunity for myself now, chance to play center, to play where I’m comfortable.”

Beyond that, Babcock didn’t make any alterations to the lines that he used versus Latvia on Wednesday. Canada only managed to score two goals against the Latvians, but they controlled the game, out shooting them 57-16.

With that in mind, here’s what the Americans will likely face on Friday:

Chris Kunitz-Sidney Crosby-Patrice Bergeron
Jamie Benn-Ryan Getzlaf-Corey Perry
Patrick Marleau-Jonathan Toews-Jeff Carter
Patrick Sharp-Matt Duchene-Rick Nash

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