1 – ICE ARMEGEDDON: Have you heard? USA will face Canada Thursday night (8 pm ET) in the championship final of the NHL’s first-ever 4 Nations Faceoff tournament in Boston. If you’re late to the party, that’s okay! You’re showing up just in time. This week’s SFT column is dedicated to what’s become the biggest thing in hockey this year.
2 – HOW WE GOT HERE: In the past few weeks in this column, I’ve endeavored to prep readers for this tournament which features the best players from USA, Canada, Sweden and Finland colliding in a three-game round robin with games split between Montreal & Boston, culminating with the championship final at TD Garden. I think we all knew Canada and the US would meet for the title, but it was an unbelievably rocky road to get here.
3 – TOURNAMENTS PAST: This is the ninth such “best-on-best” tournament the NHL has held over the past number of decades. Previously the tournament was known as the Canada Cup (five times) and the World Cup (three occasions) with the most recent being in 2016. Canada’s won the tournament six times, the USA once (1996) and the Soviet Union once (1981). However rarely has there been this much interest or drama outside of Canada like there is in 2025! Read on …
4 – RATINGS WINNER: Even hardcore hockey fans had a tough time grasping what exactly this tournament was leading up to it, despite the best efforts of the NHL, ESPN and TNT to promote it. However somewhere along the way (perhaps with the NFL season concluding and the NBA All Star Weekend being a flop) sports fans have sat up and taken notice. 3.4-million people in North America watched USA rout Finland 6-1 last Thursday while a whopping 10.1-million tuned in Saturday night to watch the Americans down Canada 3-1 to clinch top spot in the round robin and a berth in Thursday’s final. That’s a 203% increase from the last time the two countries faced off in this tournament back in 2016. Oh, and about Saturday’s game …
5 – PUGILISM IN PRIME TIME: That Canada-US showdown last Saturday night at Montreal’s Bell Centre had as much or more build-up as any game we’d seen in years (not counting Stanley Cup Playoffs of course). With political tensions rising between Canada and the US recently thanks to President Donald Trump’s threat to impose stiff tariffs on Canadian goods, Red & White hockey fans lustily booed the Star Spangled Banner prior to puck drop. The game then featured three fights in the opening nine seconds of the contest; a scene which Team Canada coach Jon Cooper referred to as “mayhem”. USA’s Tkachuk brothers – Matthew and Brady – led the way, squaring off with Canada’s Brandon Hagel and Sam Bennett respectively. When order was restored, USA skated to a 3-1 victory which included a pair of soft goals on Canadian goalie Jordan Binnington (St. Louis Blues).
6 – PRESIDENTS DAY: Some called Monday “Elimination Day” as the tournament shifted to Boston and for two teams, it was. Canada needed to defeat Finland in regulation time to earn a berth in the final and they did, 5-3. That ended any playoff hopes of the Finns, and the four Florida Panthers on the team. Later Monday night, Sweden downed USA 2-1 in a meaningless game. The Swedes had already been eliminated. Matthew Tkachuk sat this one out after suffering a mild injury versus Canada two days prior, but figures to be healthy enough to play in Thursday’s final.
7 – HISTORY: NHL stats will have you know this is the fifth time Canada has met the USA in the championship of this type of international tournament. Canada’s won three times prior (2010 & 2002 Olympics and 1991 Canada Cup) while the Americans have won once (1996). However this doesn’t take into account the US’s dominance in the prestigious World Juniors Championship which USA has claimed the past two years, and three of the last four. So you see a lot is hinging on Thursday’s game; primarily pride and bragging rights.
8 – COACHING: There’s been endless dissection of the moves made by Canadian coach Jon Cooper (Tampa Bay Lightning) in this tournament and to a lesser degree, USA’s Mike Sullivan (Pittsburgh Penguins). But I don’t listen to it. Cooper’s been criticized for sticking with Binnington despite his penchant for allowing easy goals so far in this tournament but it says here that’s why Cooper is the best coach on the planet. He picks his people, then sticks with them. He’s got the Cups to prove it. As far as nitpicking his line combinations, it’s hard to screw up when you’re deciding amongst the greatest players in the world. As for Sullivan, it’s also hard to argue with what he’s done, particularly since the Americans clinched first in the round robin.
9 – BIGGEST GAME EVER?: I’m actually a little shocked to have not read anywhere – whether it be in the media or on social media – that this is the biggest hockey game to ever be played. Team USA’s Jack Eichel told reporters on Tuesday it’s the biggest game he’s ever played in, but that’s different. In my lifetime, the biggest hockey game ever played was the 2010 Olympic mens gold medal final which saw Canada beat the USA 3-2 in overtime in Vancouver. However I’ll defer to those older than me who say the biggest hockey game ever played was Game 8 of the 1972 Summit Series between Canada and the Soviet Union. But they’re all great!
10 – PREDICTION: As stated previously in the column, I believe we all predicted the championship game would come down to Canada-USA. Now, here we are. I’ve also widely stated that I’m picking Canada to win this thing, and will be cheering for them. Like Jon Cooper, I pick a side then stay with it.
See you at the rink!
(Rod Pedersen covers the NHL for the South Florida Tribune. He also hosts the award-winning Cats N Bolts Podcast and the daily Rod Pedersen Show on Game+TV, YouTube Live & Podcast)
