It was the start that no one expected at the 4 Nations Face-Off’s marquee clash, but no one complained about.
The puck had barely touched the ice when Matthew Tkachuk and Brandon Hagel squared off, electrifying an already buzzing Bell Centre. The Montreal crowd had sung “Ole” as Canada took the ice, Sidney Crosby’s name as he collected a commemorative banner in a pre-game ceremony. They belted O Canada as loud as they would at a Montreal Canadiens playoff game. And, of course, they mercilessly booed The Star-Spangled Banner.
The United States would come out on top with a 3-1 victory Saturday, shutting down the Canadians with strong defensive play, outstanding goaltending from Connor Helleybuck, and goals from Jake Guentzel (two) and Dylan Larkin. But the teams set the tone early in the first period. Tkachuk and Hagel dueled at center ice, igniting an adrenaline-filled 20 minutes.
“I’m standing down here,” said Ray Ferraro, ESPN’s color commentator who was stationed between the benches, “And I think there’s zero chance that we see the puck hit the ice for more than one second before we’re gonna see both Tkachuk brothers sitting in the same penalty box.”
One second later, Brady Tkachuk dropped the gloves with Sam Bennett. Brady high-fived his brother as he entered the penalty box. It was almost like the Tkachuks had planned to send a message early.
“There was a little discussion during the day,” Brady laughed as he spoke to reporters after the game.
“Tell them the truth,” said Matthew, who sat to Brady’s left.
“Yeah, there was a group chat going on today,” Brady said.
“Brady and Matthew, they play the game with so much emotion,” USA head coach Mike Sullivan said. “And they’re leaders. They’re leaders in so many ways, and so for me, it’s an indication of how much these guys care and how bad they want to win.”
Nine seconds in, New York Rangers forward J.T. Miller fought Colton Parayko as the two sides gathered in front of Canada netminder Jordan Binnington following a routine save.
“You have to set the tone,” Miller said. “And when you have the Tkachuk brothers on your team, it’s just built for them. These are my favorite type of games to be in and I just think that there’s a tone to be set. Not much needs to be said. What better place to do it than in Montreal?”
“I had somewhat of an idea that that was going to happen, but I had no idea that was going to happen like that,” USA defenseman Zach Werenski, who was on the ice for the fights, said. “Off the beginning of the draw. I thought it was electric. I think it’s great for the game. It’s great for the rivalry. It was awesome.”
From there, the teams settled into an up-tempo, physical battle. They combined for 63 hits — 34 by the U.S. and 29 by Canada. But the biggest hit of the night came from Charlie McAvoy, who was second among the Americans with five.
Halfway through the first period, Canada led 1-0 behind a Connor McDavid solo dash. As the Edmonton Oilers superstar gained the offensive zone, he chipped the puck past McAvoy. McAvoy, a Long Island native and Boston Bruins blue-liner, flattened McDavid.
“This is such a special moment for our whole family for obvious reasons,” Sullivan, who is McAvoy’s father-in-law, said. “He’s just a fierce competitor. He’s a terrific hockey player.”
The hit helped swing momentum in the Americans’ favor. A few seconds later, Guentzel tied the game at one with his first of two goals, capitalizing on Canada’s sub-elite goaltending with a bad angle shot through the five-hole of Binnington.
“He’s a high-stakes player,” Sullivan said of Guentzel. “He plays his very best when it means the most. And I don’t think there’s a stage big enough for him, I just think he thrives in these types of environments.”
The adrenaline began to wear off in the second period, but the U.S. took the lead as Larkin scored on a two-on-one, catching Canada on a line change and beating Binnington under the blocker.
Though the U.S. spent most of the third period in their own zone, they stayed defensively tight. Hellebuyck turned aside 25 of the 26 shots he faced. Guentzel iced the game with a late empty net goal. By the end, Bell Centre was strangely quiet after the game’s raucous start.
With Saturday’s win, the U.S. clinched a spot in the championship game, which will be played on Feb. 20.
The tournament will shift to TD Garden in Boston on Monday, where the final three games — including the championship — will be played.
Lineup notes
Matthew Tkachuk sat out the final 12:36 of the third period with a lower-body injury and was being evaluated by team doctors, Sullivan said. Matthew told reporters after the game that he had “no concern” about his injury. Chris Kreider of the Rangers is the extra forward for the U.S.
Cale Makar missed the game with an illness. Canada head coach Jon Cooper said the star defenseman was close to playing, but “a decision was made for him not to play.” Cooper was hopeful that Makar would be back in Canada’s lineup Monday, “but there’s no determination on that yet.”
Thomas Harley, who was called up after Shea Theodore was ruled out for the remainder of the tournament, was in the lineup. Makar was at morning skate, so Harley did not practice with the team prior to the game, per tournament rules.
Sam Bennett replaced Travis Konecny in the Canadian lineup Saturday.
