Maple Leafs Player Makes Puzzling Decision Ahead of Upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off

On Thursday, Auston Matthews received the great honour of being named captain of his country, Team USA, at the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off.

Along with Matthews earning the captaincy for Team USA, the Leafs will have another player wearing a letter for his country as well, as William Nylander will don the "A" for Team Sweden.

Although not nearly as important as Thursday's letter announcements, on Friday, TSN's Chris Johnston shared a post, revealing the jersey number for each player taking part in the tournament.

While the Toronto Sun's Terry Koshan was quick to point out that all of Auston Matthews, William Nylander and Mitch Marner would be wearing their usual 34, 88, and 16, he also noted that Finland's Jani Hakanpaa was not given his usual #28 (Anaheim, Toronto) or his #2 (which he wore in Dallas). Instead, he was listed as #58 -- a number that he wore only briefly during his 15-game stint in Carolina in 2020-21.

Perhaps the most interesting thing about this situation, Hakanpaa's #28 actually happens to be available, as no other player listed on Finland's roster has taken it. If his preferred number is 58, it also happens to be available in Toronto as well, as it was last worn by Michael Bunting, who left long before Hakanpaa signed with the Leafs. Very puzzling.

The hulking defenseman taking part in the tournament at all is a bit of a hot-button topic among Maple Leafs fans, who are frustrated by the fact that he's played just 2 games for the Leafs all season.

Shouldn't the priority be for Hakanpaa to focus on getting healthy for the Maple Leafs? With his constant health issues this season, does it really make sense to have him play in a meaningless tournament, risking further injury? This one is a bit of a head-scratcher.