The best hockey players from four different countries will take the ice in the 4 Nations Face-Off, which begins Wednesday. The United States, Canada, Finland and Sweden all have rosters loaded with superstars in the first best-on-best international tournament the NHL has participated in since the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.
The four teams will play a round robin style tournament in which the top two teams will advance to the championship game. The rosters have already been announced, along with the full tournament schedule.
2025 4 Nations Face-Off: Where to watch, live stream, TV channel, schedule, format, rosters
Chris Bengel
It’s been a while since there was this much talent on one sheet of ice. Auston Matthews (USA), Sidney Crosby (Canada), Aleksander Barkov (Finland) and Victor Hedman (Sweden) will each captain their respective teams, and each squad is loaded with marquee names from Stanley Cup champions to Hart Trophy winners.
With so much talent on each team, there isn’t much daylight between them, which makes this tournament difficult to predict. Still, we’re going to give that a shot today as we preview what’s to come in Montreal and Boston.
Here are our predictions for the round robin, tournament MVP and 4 Nations Face-Off winner.
Round robin preview
Nivison: Looking at the rosters from top to bottom, I think the U.S. is the most complete team in the tournament. They have four dangerous forward lines, three pretty versatile defensive pairs and by far the best goaltending trio.
They may not be Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon, but Auston Matthews and Jack Eichel is a pretty formidable one-two punch down the middle. Add in Jake Guentzel and the Tkachuk brothers on the wing, and that’s tough to beat. The Americans also have two Norris Trophy contenders in Quinn Hughes and Zach Werenski on the blue line.
Team USA’s biggest advantage is between the pipes. No one else in the NHL is playing as well as two-time Vezina Trophy winner Connor Hellebuyck, and the U.S. has quality backup options in Jake Oettinger and Jeremy Swarman.
That depth will earn the United States a spot in the championship game, which leaves Canada and Sweden battling for the other one. If the Canadians wanted to, they could ice McDavid, MacKinnon, Sidney Crosby and Brayden Point down the middle. No team can match that center depth, and being able to slot Sam Reinhart and Mitch Marner on the wings isn’t too bad either.
Canada has two ready-made defensive pairs with Colorado Avalanche teammates Cale Makar and Vegas Golden Knights teammates Alex Pietrangelo and Shea Theodore together. That gives them some chemistry they’ll need to shelter the weakest crease in the tournament.
None of Canada’s goaltenders — Adin Hill, Jordan Binnington and Sam Montembeault — are having even above-average NHL seasons. Each one of them could be a liability, and it might cost Canada a spot in the title game.
Even after losing Jacob Markstrom to injury, Sweden doesn’t have that problem in goal. Filip Gustavsson could be in the Vezina Trophy discussion, and Linus Ullmark has already won the award in his career. Besides, Sweden’s goaltenders shouldn’t be too busy because the defense is full of shutdown options. Victor Hedman, Gustav Forsling, Mattias Ekholm and Rasmus Andersson can all be counted on to handle tough minutes against the best competition.
While the top of Sweden’s lineup has plenty of pop, with William Nylander and Jesper Bratt leading the way, the depth may be a problem when facing the U.S. and Canada. Leo Carlsson, Viktor Arvidsson and Rickard Rakell are good NHL players, but they don’t stack up well with the elite of the elite.
Finland could challenge for a spot in the championship game, but it faces an uphill battle. Miro Heiskanen, one of the better two-way defensemen in this tournament, is out with an injury. The rest of the blue line doesn’t quite stack up with that of other teams, and it doesn’t help that Juuse Saros has played well below expectations in net this season. If Finland can’t keep other teams out of its net, it doesn’t have the offensive firepower to win track meets.
The U.S. will finish atop the round robin standings, and I’ll give Sweden the nod in second place because I just can’t overlook the glaring question mark in Canada’s crease.
Predicted order of finish
1. USA
2. Sweden
3. Canada
4. Finland
Bengel: Traditionally, Canada enters these types of national team tournaments as the team to beat. However, that’s far from the case this time around.
It would be hard to find a more complete roster than what the United States has put together. The American possess some of the league’s most formidable offensive threats with the likes of Auston Matthews, Matthew Tkachuk, Jack Hughes, Kyle Connor and Jack Eichel just to name a few.
While the United States offense can be viewed as quite ridiculous, it’s the back end that really makes it a complete group. While not having Vancouver Canucks defenseman Quinn Hughes stings a bit, Charlie McAvoy of the Boston Bruins and Zach Werenski of the Blue Jackets are two of the top blue-liners that the NHL has to offer. On top of that, Ottawa Senators star Jake Sanderson has showcased his offensive prowess over the last few seasons, so there is definitely is a suitable replacement for Hughes.
On top of that, the United States has a supreme advantage in between the pipes with Connor Hellebuyck, Jeremy Swayman and Jake Oettinger in net. It’s hard to argue that Hellebuyck hasn’t been the most impressive NHL goaltender over the past two seasons. Still, the Americans would be in capable hands with Oettinger or Swayman manning the crease as well.
It seems crazy to say, but Canada may have the goaltenders with the least amount of upside in the entire tournament. Jordan Binnington, Adin Hill and Sam Montembeault aren’t exactly on the same level as many of the other netminders, but Binnington and Hill do have the experience of leading an NHL team on a Stanley Cup run.
Even if the goaltending is subpar, it’s possible Canada can rack up enough goals to where it’s not as much of an issue. That’s the beauty of having players like Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Mitch Marner, Sam Reinhart and Brayden Point on the same roster. The biggest question mark could be the status of Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby, who is dealing with an upper-body injury. If the Canadians are forced to replace Crosby on their roster, that would be quite a brutal blow.
The United States definitely has more star power than any of the national teams in this tournament, and I expect that to shine through. I’m trusting that Canada has enough forward depth to outscore some of their opponents despite Sweden and Finland also having their fair amount of firepower. Still, this is the Americans’ tournament to lose.
Predicted order of finish
1. USA
2. Canada
3. Sweden
4. Finland
Championship Game
Nivison: USA vs. Sweden
This matchup would likely be a test of Team USA’s patience. Sweden has the defense to make life extremely difficult on the American forwards, and the Swedes have the ability to counter-attack and capitalize if Team USA tries to force things offensively. After all, Sweden will be able to keep an elite shutdown defender on the ice at all times. Even if Team USA does get behind the Swedish defense, it will still have to beat Filip Gustavsson or Linus Ullmark.
Where the Americans will have the advantage in this matchup is their ability to roll four lines. Not only is Team USA much better down the middle, but its bottom-six can create matchup problems for Sweden. Dylan Larkin, Matt Boldy and Brock Nelson could cause problems for Elias Lindholm, Carlsson and Arvidsson.
If this is the championship clash, I would expect a low-scoring affair with the Americans’ depth pushing them over the top in the third period. Pick — USA def. Sweden
Bengel: USA vs. Canada
In previous years, it would be hard to expect anything other than the United States to be taking on Canada. However, the Canadians do have more of an uphill battle than they have in previous Winter Olympics and other tournaments.
I’m counting on Canada’s star power showing up leading up to the championship game, but the United States should come out on top this time around. The Americans have a nice mix of shutdown defenders on their blue line in the form of Zach Werenski, Charlie McAvoy and Brock Faber, and all three defensive pairings offer offensive upside as well.
The offensive depth for the American should be out in full force. While Auston Matthews or Matthew Tkachuk could lead the scoring charge, there’s no shortage of goal scorers on the United States roster. Regardless of who would be in net for Canada, the United States should be able to excel in every area and put the puck in the net at a solid clip. It also doesn’t hurt that the United States will likely have Connor Hellebuyck in the crease, and his presence should be able to turn aside many Canadian scoring chances when the lights are the brightest. Pick — USA def. Canada
Tournament MVP
Nivison: The list of potential candidates is a mile long, but if Team USA is going to win this tournament, Connor Hellebuyck will likely have to make some huge stops in net. If there’s one thing we know about Hellebuyck, it’s that big saves have become routine for him. The American netminder is just playing at a different level than every other goalie in the game, and I don’t see that changing behind an elite defense. Look for Hellebuyck to post a sky-high save percentage and a minuscule goals against average. Pick — Connor Hellebuyck, G, USA
Bengel: When the world’s top players are gathering on a big stage, the list of potential MVPs is endless. Still, if the United States ends up winning the tournament, it’s hard to imagine it not being on the back of Auston Matthews. The Maple Leafs star is finally healthy and enters the tournament playing some terrific hockey in recent weeks. Matthews anchors the middle of the ice for the Americans and is a threat to score on any trip into the offensive zone. I’m looking for Matthews to take on a tremendous leadership role and get into the scoring column quite often. Pick — Auston Matthews, C, USA
