John Tavares will not play for Canada in the 2019 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship.
The Toronto Maple Leafs center left Team Canada's practice on Thursday with an upper body injury. It was later confirmed by the Maple Leafs that Tavares had suffered an oblique injury, with the 28-year-old set to head back to Toronto for further evaluation by the NHL team's medical staff.
Leafs centre John Tavares sustained an oblique injury in preparation for the World Championships. Tavares will return to Toronto for further evaluation by the Leafs medical staff and a further update will follow in the coming days.
— Leafs PR (@LeafsPR) May 9, 2019
The injury means Tavares will miss the tournament. He had been skating on Canada's top line at practice, between Jonathan Marchessault and Mark Stone of the Vegas Golden Knights.
“We are disappointed that John will not be able to participate as a member of Team Canada at the 2019 IIHF World Championship, but after contacting the Toronto Maple Leafs we agreed it was best for him to return home for further evaluation,” Jason Botterill, a member of Canada's management group, said in a statement. “We know John was excited about the opportunity to wear the Maple Leaf once again, and we were excited to have John as a member of our team and to welcome his many years of NHL and international experience.”
Tavares had only joined Team Canada's camp on Monday, after making an agreement to delay his arrival. Ultimately, his time with the team lasted less than a week.
Canada's first game of the World Championship is Friday against Finland.