2025 4 Nations Face-Off schedule, how to watch, full team previews

Professional hockey’s seemingly round-robin of best-on-best tournaments takes a new turn this week, as the 4 Nations Face-Off kicks off from Montreal and Boston beginning Wednesday.

The competition pits four of the world’s hockey superpowers against each other, as the United States, Canada, Sweden, and Finland boast rosters filled to the brim with NHL superstars to fight for temporary supremacy.

Replacing the All-Star Game this year, this is expected to be the starting point of what hopefully will be a steady stream of competition between national teams that include NHL players.

After commissioner Gary Bettman did not release his players for the 2018 and 2022 Winter Olympics, they will return to the Games for 2026 and 2030. The World Cup of Hockey, which made a rousing appearance in 2016, will also return in 2028 and 2032.

4 Nations Format

The NHL took four of the top six ranked teams by the IIHF at the time of the competition’s announcement in February of 2024. Russia, ranked No. 3 in the world, has been banned from competition by the IIHF since war broke out in Ukraine while No. 5 Germany did not have enough NHL players to field a full roster.

Each of the four teams will play each other once in the group stage, or round-robin portion of the tournament, with the two teams with the most points moving on to a one-game championship.

Games will be played on NHL-sized rinks (not international) and follow NHL rules. A win is worth two points, and an overtime loss is worth one. Round-robin games that are tied after three periods will go to a 10-minute, 3-on-3 sudden-death overtime period. If a winner does not emerge from that, the game will move to a three-round shootout.

Should the championship game go to overtime, 20-minute, 5-on-5 sudden-death periods will be played until the game is decided.

Meet the 4 Nations

Canada

This feels like a dream team.

Two transcendental superstars of the last two generations, Connor McDavid and Sidney Crosby, center each of Canada’s top two lines. McDavid is going to be on a power play with the Avalanche’s dynamic duo of Cale Makar and Nathan MacKinnon.

This team is rife with 50-goal scorers and elite playmakers. Every single line that comes over the boards is a legitimate threat to score. There are no grinding lines, no defense-first, hold ’em lines. This will be the most fun team to watch at this tournament.

Roster

Sam Bennet, F, Florida Panthers
Jordan Binnington, G, St. Louis Blues
Anthony Cirelli, F, Tampa Bay Lightning
Sidney Crosby, F, Pittsburgh Penguins
Drew Doughty, D, Los Angeles Kings
Brandon Hagel, F, Tampa Bay Lightning
Adin Hill, G, Vegas Golden Knights
Set Jarvis, F, Carolina Hurricanes
Travis Konecny, F, Philadelphia Flyers
Nathan MacKinnon, F, Colorado Avalanche
Cale Makar, D, Colorado Avalanche
Brad Marchand, F, Boston Bruins
Mitch Marner, F, Toronto Maple Leafs
Connor McDavid, F, Edmonton Oilers
Sam Montembeault, G, Montreal Canadiens
Josh Morrissey, D, Winnipeg Jets
Colton Parayko, D, St. Louis Blues
Brayden Point, F, Tampa Bay Lightning
Sam Reinhart, F, Florida Panthers
Travis Sanheim, Philadelphia Flyers
Mark Stone, F, Vegas Golden Knights
Shea Theodore, D, Vegas Golden Knights
Devon Toews, D, Colorado Avalanche

Projected lines

Forwards

Reinhart – McDavid – Marner
Stone – Crosby – MacKinnon
Jarvis – Point – Marchand
Hagel – Cirelli – Bennett

Defense

Toews – Makar
Theodore – Doughty
Morrisey – Parayko

Goalie

Hill

Finland

This is not the flashiest or deepest team, but Finland continues to find ways to compete with the world’s best.

These are the 2019 and 2022 World Championship winners and the gold medalists at the no-NHL 2022 Olympics. Out of four teams, they should finish fourth, but one cannot count them out.

Roster

Sebastian Aho, F, Carolina Hurricanes
Joel Armia, F, Montreal Canadiens
Aleksander Barkov, F, Florida Panthers
Mikael Granlund, F, Dallas Stars
Erik Haula, F, New Jersey Devils
Roope Hintz, F, Dallas Stars
Henri Jokiharju, D, Buffalo Sabres
Kaapo Kakko, F, Seattle Kraken
Patrik Laine, F, Montreal Canadiens
Kevin Lankinen, G, Vancouver Canucks
Artturi Lehkonen, F, Colorado Avalanche
Esa Lindell, D, Dallas Stars
Anton Lundell, F, Florida Panthers
Eetu Luostarinen, F, Florida Panthers
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, G, Buffalo Sabres
Olli Maatta, D, Utah Hockey Club
Nikolas Matinpalo, D, Ottawa Senators
Niko Mikkola, D, Florida Panthers
Mikko Rantanen, F, Carolina Hurricanes
Juuse Saros, G, Nashville Predators
Tuevo Teravainen, F, Chicago Blackhawks
Urho Vaakanainen, D, New York Rangers
Juuso Valimaki, D, Utah Hockey Club

Projected lines

Forwards

Teravainen – Barkov – Laine
Lehkonen – Aho – Rantanen
Granlund – Hintz – Kakko
Luostarinen – Lundell – Armia

Defense

Lindell – Maattaa
Valimaki – Jokiharju
Mikkola – Vaakanainen

Goalie

Saros

Sweden

Sweden is a team built on its wing depth and its aging yet star-studded defense.

If this tournament was five years earlier, the prospect of a blue line featuring Victor Hedman and Erik Karlsson would make any hockey fan salivate.

Sweden leaves plenty to be desired down the middle and in goal. Mika Zibanejad has struggled mightily this season with the Rangers and outside of Elias Pettersson, who is emerging from the drama in Vancouver following his beef with JT Miller, the center depth is not inspiring.

With goalie Jacob Markstrom injured, Sweden is relying on Linus Ullmark, who recently returned from a long injury absence, and Filip Gustavsson, who has regressed mightily following a strong start to the season.

Roster

Rasmus Andersson, D, Calgary Flames
Viktor Arvidsson, F, Edmonton Oilers
Jesper Bratt, F, New Jersey Devils
Jonas Brodin, D, Minnesota Wild
Leo Carlsson, F, Anaheim Ducks
Rasmus Dahlin, D, Buffalo Sabres
Mattias Ekholm, D, Edmonton Oilers
Joel Eriksson Ek, F, Minnesota Wild
Samuel Ersson, G, Philadelphia Flyers
Filip Forsberg, F, Nashville Predators
Gustav Forsling, D, Florida Panthers
Filip Gustavsson, G, Minnesota Wild
Victor Hedman, D, Tampa Bay Lightning
Erik Karlsson, D, Pittsburgh Penguins
Adrian Kempe, F, Los Angeles Kings
Elias Lindholm, F, Boston Bruins
William Nylander, F, Toronto Maple Leafs
Gustav Nyquist, F, Nashville Predators
Elias Pettersson, F, Vancouver Canucks
Lucas Raymond, F, Detroit Red Wings
Rickard Rakell, F, Pittsburgh Penguins
Linus Ullmark, G, Ottawa Senators
Mika Zibanejad, F, New York Rangers

Projected lines

Forwards

Forsberg – Pettersson – Kempe
Rakell – Zibanejad – Nylander
Bratt – Eriksson Ek – Raymond
Arvidsson – LIndholm – Nyquist

Defense

Hedman – Brodin
Dahlin – Andersson
Ekholm – Karlsson

Goalie

Gustavsson

United States

Austin Matthews 4 Nations USA — BROSSARD, QUEBEC – FEBRUARY 10: Auston Matthews #34 of Team USA talks to J.T. Miller #10 before the start of practice for the NHL 4 Nations Face-Off at CN Sports Complex on February 10, 2025 in Brossard, Quebec. (Photo by Vitor Munhoz/4NFO/World Cup of Hockey via Getty Images)

The United States has not rolled out a complete roster like this in some time, so if there is a feeling of finally getting over the best-on-best international hump, it is more than understandable.

The US has not won a best-on-best tournament since the World Cup of Hockey since 1996, coming up with silvers at the 2002 and 2010 Olympics.

There is an abundance of firepower up front. Auston Matthews is the best pure goal-scorer in the game, while the roster is dotted with a variety of playmakers, from the finesse of Jack Hughes and the sniping prowess of Kyle Connor to the physical and powerful Tkachuk brothers, along with JT Miller of the Rangers.

While the defense will be without Canucks star Quinn Hughes (injury), Zach Werenski is one of the more underrated stars of the game to provide two-way play alongside former Norris Trophy winner (and Ranger) Adam Fox.

The major difference-maker, though, is in net. Connor Hellebuyck is the best goaltender on the planet right now and already the clear favorite to win his third-career Vezina Trophy. Yes, he has struggled in playoff-type atmospheres, but the depth behind him has not.