The NHL‘s decision to replace All-Star weekend with a round-robin global tournament may have been their best decision in a long time. The 4 Nations Face-Off was a huge success, featuring the best players from the United States, Canada, Finland, and Sweden. Fights and electric overtime wins were just two aspects of an unforgettable week on the ice with some of the best players in the world.
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How Did it Work?
In classic round-robin fashion, each nation played each other once. A points system was used to determine the standings. Unlike the NHL, however, the tournament operated on a three-point system: three points for a regulation win, two points for an overtime/shootout win, and one point for an overtime/shootout loss. The two teams with the highest point totals would face each other in the championship.
The Round-Robin Stage
Canada and Sweden faced off to begin the tournament, starting the week in an exhilarating fashion. Canada led 3-1 after two periods, but goals by Adrian Kempe and Joel Eriksson Ek in the third brought it to overtime. At 6:06 in an electric 3-on-3 overtime, Mitch Marner put it past Swedish goaltender Filip Gustavsson to give Canada the first win of the tournament.
The rest of the round-robin stage featured games such as the US dominating Finland 6-1, with two goals each from brothers Matthew and Brady Tkachuk. Sweden lost in overtime again, this time to Finland as Mikael Granlund scored the winner at 1:49. Canada beat Finland 5-3 featuring two goals from Nathan MacKinnon, and Granlund scored two goals for Finland. Sweden beat the US 2-1, with goals from Gustav Nyquist and Jesper Bratt as Samuel Ersson made 32 saves for Sweden.
The true highlight of the initial stage, however, was US-Canada. The most anticipated matchup of the tournament featured three fights in the first nine seconds of the game. Matthew Tkachuk found Canada’s Brandon Hagel from the opening draw, Brady Tkachuk squared off against Sam Bennett just seconds later, followed by J.T. Miller and Colton Parayko. When it was all said and done, the US won the game, 3-1, featuring two goals from Jake Guentzel, and a goal and an assist from Dylan Larkin.
At the end of the round-robin, the US and Canada led the stage with six points and five points respectively, setting up a rematch of the unforgettable game for the championship.
The Championship
Watching a championship game between hockey’s two most respected nations, and watching guys like Connor McDavid, Sidney Crosby, and Nathan MacKinnon go up against Auston Matthews, the Tkachuks, Jack Hughes and more is pure hockey bliss. The first matchup between the two was thrilling enough on its own, and now they would get to face off for the 4 Nations championship. Anticipation was off the charts, and the game did not disappoint.
Nathan MacKinnon got the scoring going for Canada at 4:48 in the first period, with assists from Thomas Harley and Sam Reinhart. Brady Tkachuk evened the score on a wrist shot at 16:52 with an assist from Auston Matthews.
The US took the lead at 7:32 in the second with Jake Sanderson netting the go-ahead goal assisted by Matthews and Zach Werenski. At 14:00, Canada tied it back up, courtesy of Sam Bennett assisted by Mitch Marner. A scoreless third sent this one to overtime.
Most of OT played out as a nerve-wracking back and forth. The US gained possession for a good amount of the period, but late giveaways ultimately prevented them from setting up more opportunities. The hero of the game was none other than Connor McDavid, whose game-winning goal at 8:18 was assisted by Mitch Marner and Cale Makar.
He may not have any Stanley Cups to his name, at least not yet, but Connor McDavid’s case as one of this generation’s greatest hockey players only grew stronger with his late-game heroics to secure a 4 Nations championship for Canada.
How the Game Grew
Rather than the bland, uncompetitive All-Star weekend fans have been used to, introducing the 4 Nations was an extremely smart move for the NHL.
The 4 Nations was the first international hockey tournament in 9 years, since the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. Featuring the four most successful hockey countries in the world, the tournament was bound to draw the attention of sports fans. Sure enough, it was a massive hit for North American viewers. 16.1 million viewers tuned into the championship game, with 9.3 million viewers in the United States and 6.3 million in Canada. The game was the most-viewed non-NFL game ever on ESPN+ and was also reported to be the most-watched game on US cable since September 2024, excluding NFL and college football games.
“A lot of stuff going on with Canada and the USA right now, and us playing against each other was kind of a perfect storm for our sport,” Nathan MacKinnon told NPR after Canada clinched the championship. “It was much more popular than even we would have imagined. It was getting so much attention from our whole continent.”
Putting things into perspective, the 16.1 million viewers across North America still fall short of Game 7 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final between the Edmonton Oilers and the Florida Panthers, which drew 16.3 million viewers. There is no doubt that the game of hockey is growing at a rapid pace, and an exciting 4 Nations only helped to boost that growth. Don’t expect to see another one next year, however, as regular All-Star weekend will be returning, but the 4 Nations Face-Off was an experiment gone right for the NHL. The league will consider and potentially debut more midseason exhibitions to continue to grow the game of hockey around the world.
