By Collin Scriven | February 24, 2025
Photo Credit: Pixabay
The National Hockey League (NHL) changed up the format of its All-Star game this season when it introduced the Four Nations Face-Off. This best-on-best round robin tournament featured a team of NHL players from the United States, Canada, Finland, and Sweden all duking it out to claim the tournament championship. It also marks the first time NHL players competed in an international tournament since 2016’s World Cup of Hockey.
It all started Wednesday, Feb. 12, when Canada defeated Sweden 4-3 in overtime at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Canada. A win in regulation earns a team three points towards reaching the championship game, while an overtime / shootout win is worth two, and a loss in overtime / shootout is awarded a single point. The next day the U.S. took on Finland and won 6-1 in dominant fashion, putting their strength on full display. Both Tkachuk brothers, Matthew and Brady, scored twice in that game.
Following a day off, play resumed Saturday, Feb. 15, and saw the first double header of the tournament. First, Finland earned its first points after taking down Sweden 4-3 in overtime. The second game showcased possibly the most anticipated matchup of the tournament, as the U.S. took on Canada and reignited a historic rivalry.
The contest began with three fights within the first nine seconds of the game, making it clear how much was on the line for both teams. What followed was a tight game until America’s Jake Guentzel netted his second goal of the game on an empty net to put the game out of reach as the U.S. won 3-1. On top of the three fights, this matchup had nearly 50 percent more hits than an average NHL game. With the win, the U.S. had secured a spot in the championship game.
After a change of scenery, the tournament picked back up with another double header on Monday, Feb. 17, from TD Garden in Boston. With a spot in the championship game on the line, Canada and Finland got the day started. A win in regulation for either team would clinch the second spot in the championship game, and that’s exactly what Canada got, winning 5-3 and eliminating Finland and Sweden. The stage was set for a Canada-U.S. rematch in the championship game, this time in the states. In a game that didn’t mean anything as far as the tournament later that day, Sweden took down the U.S. 2-1 in regulation.
The U.S.-Canada rematch had just about as much hype surrounding it as any single hockey game in recent memory, and it lived up to the hype. Canada got the scoring started when Nathan MacKinnon got one past Connor Hellebuyck early in the first period to put them up 1-0. The U.S. answered back when Brady Tkachuk scored with just over three minutes left in the first to tie it up, and that would be the score at the end of the period. Just about halfway through the second period Jake Sanderson of the U.S. netted his first goal of the tournament to give the red white and blue its first lead of the game.
Not to be outdone, Canada’s Sam Bennet scored with six minutes to go in the second to tie it up at two, and that would be the score heading into the third. Despite a flurry of shots by Canada in the final minute, no one was able to score and the game went into overtime, which is five-on-five in 20-minute periods for this game, unlike NHL regular season overtime. After a back and forth eight minutes of overtime, it was ultimately Connor McDavid who found the back of the net and won it for team Canada. In short, this game was an instant classic.
Why Was This So Good?
With the All-Star game becoming less of an attraction across the four major sports in the U.S., it was nice to see the NHL change it up, especially after seeing the reaction to the NBA All-Star game that took place during the Four Nations Face-Off. One complaint across sports is the players in all-star events not exactly trying. Both the NFL Pro Bowl games and the NBA All-Star game especially have been suffering from this in recent years. This was proven to not be an issue for the Four Nations Face-Off, which had as much, and on some occasions more physicality and effort than the average NHL game. The entire tournament was entertaining and a joy to watch.
The NHL was able to solve the problem of player participation by putting national pride on the line, leading to competition that rivals that of any given NHL game. Combine that with the fact that very few players opted out of the tournament - and most who did opt out were because of injury - the NHL has possibly created the blueprint of a successful all-star game event.
The high-level hockey on display drew more and more viewers to the tournament, with the championship game becoming one of the most talked-about hockey matches in recent memory. The success of this event cannot be overstated, and its impact on introducing new fans to the NHL will likely continue to grow.
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