NHL Player Forced To Leave Team USA Camp To Recover From Injury

The Calgary Flames may have missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but throughout the 2024/25 campaign, they saw some breakout campaigns from key pieces of their future.

While Dustin Wolf steals all the headlines, former first-round pick Matt Coronato had an incredible season of his own, scoring 24 goals and 47 points in 77 games, the first full season of his NHL career.

While his start in the NHL was slow given the lack of opportunity, Coronato thrived in the AHL, and this season, he was given another chance by Head Coach Ryan Huska, and this time, he took the ball and ran with it.

This gained him plenty of acclaim from Flames fans, with others clearly taking note as well, as it was revealed that the 22-year old will be joining Team USA for the upcoming 2025 IIHF World Championships in Denmark and Sweden.

Unfortunately, that all changed on Monday, as the Flames officially announced on social media that due to an MRI that was conducted this past week, the talented young forward has been forced to withdraw from the tournament.

While it would have been a great opportunity for the talented young star, the Flames need to prioritize the 2025/26 season and getting their players healthy for training camp, so unfortunately for Coronato, that means missing out on representing Team USA at the World tournament.

If he can continue to develop at the NHL level, Coronato is shaping up to be a potential 30 or even 40 goal scorer at the NHL, and with good physicality, this likely isn't going to be his last chance to represent his country on the international stage.