Cole Caufield sits in a four-way tie for first in the NHL goalscoring race through 12 games. It's a breakout season for the Montreal Canadiens sniper, who came to the NHL with high hopes about his goalscoring potential but hasn't been able to tally more than 30 goals in a single season. It isn't a massive issue, as he had 26 goals in the 46-game 2022-23 season and 23 in the 67-game 2021-22 season. The winger would have scored 30+ if he had stayed healthy in those seasons.
Staying healthy could be the deciding factor in Caufield playing with Team USA at the Four Nations Faceoff. It would be hard for the American front office to keep him off the roster if he continues to lead the league in goals at the time of roster selection, and a healthy Caufield would undoubtedly help the USA with their goal of being the world's best hockey team. He may not be Montreal's only hope of making a roster for the February tournament, but he has to be the frontrunner right now.
Caufield was not on NHL.com's initial projected roster last February. He made his way onto the updated version in July, and it is now an integral piece for their recent update this week. Auston Matthews, Jack Eichel, and Matthew Tkachuk are already on the roster. Caufield will compete with Kyle Connor, Clayton Keller, and possibly Tkachuk for the right-wing spots. However, it is one area where the Americans aren't as deep. Troy Terry, Alex Tuch, and Brock Boeser are some names who could unseat the first four.
Caufield helped his chances this past spring in a defacto USA Hockey tryout at the Men's World Championship. He had a dissapointing start to the tournament, but ended with four goals and four assists in eight games. He racked up some of those points against inferior competition, but it gave the front office a look at how important Caufield could be with his ability to score in bunches at short tournaments.
Samuel Montembeault and Nick Suzuki seemed like locks to join Caufield at the tournament, which will have some games at the Bell Centre. However, Montembeault's play in the first month will likely leave him off the roster. Suzuki still has a chance, as he can bring a bottom-six center role, which is invaluable at these tournaments.