By Brie Solivan
If you're a dedicated hockey fan then you have heard of the NHL All-Star Weekend.
It takes takes place around this time of year. Players get picked to compete in events to test their skills however this year it did not occur. The reason it did not occur is that the NHL introduced a preview to the Olympic-style game of hockey, getting fans excited for the return of hockey in the upcoming Olympics. The 4 Nations. The 4 Nations consisted of the United States, Canada, Sweden, and Finland.
The USA vs. Canada games were pretty intense and deserve focus.
Each team competing in the 4 Nations competition consists of 23 NHL players, that's 20 skaters tagged along with 3 goalies. To play in these games you have to be in an NHL contract and play in the 24-25 season while also getting picked by the hockey association for that team. (Hockey Canada, Finnish Ice Hockey Association, Swedish Ice Hockey Association, and USA Hockey)
The USA and Canada teams have always had a rivalry and any sports event that is international is the one time where every American comes together becoming insanely patriotic. The rivalry seemed to be more intense this time around considering everything political happening between the two countries. It brought about many heightened emotions especially when the United States national was booed as it previously had been. The
first game was at the Ball Centre in Monreal.
In the first nine seconds, three fights broke out. Canada’s Brandon Hagel vs. USA Matthew Tkachuk were the first ones sent straight to the penalty box after they fought exactly two seconds into the game, then, of course, his big brother Brady Tkachuk dropping the gloves a second later with Canada’s Sam Bennet. Now six seconds after those two USA’s JT Miller and Canada’s Colton Parayko threw punches. Nobody, not even the coaches, was surprised as these two teams are already very competitive as well as have a lot of respect for the countries they represent.
Canada’s coach Jon Cooper had come out to confirm it was not planned between the two teams. USA and Canada played each other twice, the first game was when the fights happened as well as the U.S. beat Canada 3-1 on February 15th and the second game was the championship game on Feb. 20.
Unfortunately, Canada won the championship game 3-2 when Connor McDavid had a successful wrist shot that found the back of the net. On the bright side, the United States did out-shoot Canada 33-27 and just struggled to get another in the net despite their determined efforts. The United States also finished the tournament 2-0-1-1 translating to W, OTW, OTL, and L which does mean they ended up coming in second place!
Everybody in the hockey community came together to honor the late Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau. Johnny was a huge part of USA Hockey and was incredibly loved. Team USA left his jersey, number 13, hung up in a cubby in the locker room the entire time while also taking a minute of silence to honor them. Guy Gaudreau was also in attendance to honor his sons. USA’s Honorary captain walked out wearing a Johnny Gaudreau jersey as well.
National Hockey League shield, 2 February 2020, Wikmedia Commons (nhl.com)
The following sources were used for this report.
NHL Public Relations @PR_NHL. “NHL, NHLPA ANNOUNCE 2025 4 Nations Face-Off.” NHL.Com, 2 Feb. 2024, www.nhl.com/news/nhl-nhlpa-announce-2025-4-nations-face-off.
Dan Rosen @drosennhl NHL.com Senior Writer. “United States Playing for Gaudreau, Brother at 4 Nations Face-Off.” NHL.Com, 11 Feb. 2025, www.nhl.com/news/united-states-playing-for-johnny-gaudreau-and-brother-at-4-nations-face-off.
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