in 2025 4 Nations Face-Off it starts on February 12 and ends on February 20, but what is the tournament and how did it come about?
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman announced the international tournament at a press conference at the 2024 NHL All-Star Game.
In a statement from the NHL, the league said it views the 4 Nations event as “a building block of a larger World Cup.”
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NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman speaks to the media before the game between the Edmonton Oilers and the Ottawa Senators at the Canadian Tire Centre. (Marc DesRosiers-Imagn Pictures)
Bettman said that in addition to the players competing in the Olympic Games 2026they will play in the 2028 World Cup, return for the 2030 Olympics and then have another World Cup two years after that to set up a cycle of international matches.
Bettman called the 4 Nations Face-Off an “appetizer” for what looks to be a packed international slate for the sport of hockey in the coming years.
The tournament will be the first time since 2016 that NHL players have been in an international best-on-best tournament. It was the World Hockey Championship in 2016, and eight teams participated in that tournament.
Due to the 4 Nations Face-Off, there will be no All-Star Game this season.
Here’s what you need to know about the upcoming tournament.
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Actor Will Arnett, left, and Team McDavid captain Connor McDavid look on during the NHL All-Star Player Draft at NHL All-Star Thursday at Scotiabank Arena. (John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports)
What is the format of the tournament?
The tournament is round-robin, and each team plays three games.
For each regular victory, the winning team will receive three points. For each overtime or shootout victory, the team will receive two points.
For each overtime or shootout loss, the team will receive one point. A team will not be awarded a point for a loss in regulation.
Overtime is a 10-minute 3-on-3 sudden-death period. If overtime is scoreless, the game will be decided by a three-round shootout.
The top two teams will play in a winner-takes-all final.
If overtime is required in a championship game, it will be traditional 5-on-5 hockey with consecutive 20-minute periods, like overtime in Stanley Cup Playoffs.
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NHL commissioner Gary Bettman answers questions from the media before the game between the Vegas Golden Knights and the Colorado Avalanche at T-Mobile Arena. (Lucas Peltier-Imagn Images)
Where and when are the matches played?
The tournament will be held in North America, with games at the Bell Center in Montreal and the TD Garden in Boston.
There are two training days, February 10 and 11, and then the games start.
Four games are played at the Bell Center and three at TD Garden.
Here are the games being played at the Bell Center:
- Wednesday, February 12: Canada vs. Sweden at 8:00 PM ET.
- Thursday, February 13: USA vs. Finland at 8:00 PM ET.
Saturday, February 15, is a doubleheader at the Bell Center. Finland plays Sweden at 1:00 PM ET, while Sweden will play the United States at 8:00 PM ET
TD Garden will also host a doubleheader. On Monday, February 17, Canada will play Finland at 1:00 PM ET, while Sweden will play the United States at 8:00 PM ET.
The championship game is Thursday, February 20, at 8:00 PM ET.
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September 21, 2016; Team North America center Connor McDavid, #97, tries to knock the puck away from Team Sweden defenseman Victor Hedman, #77, in the third period during a 2016 World Cup of Hockey preliminary round game at the Air Canada Center on Sept. 21. , 2016 (encyclopedic entry). (Kevin Sousa-USA TODAY Sports)
Who’s on the list?
Each roster will consist of 13 forwards, seven defensemen and three goaltenders.
Team Canada
Successors (listed in alphabetical order of last name):
Sam Bennett, Florida Panthers
Anthony Cirelli, Tampa Bay Lightning
Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins
Brandon Hagel, Tampa Bay Lightning
Seth Jarvis, Carolina Hurricanes
Travis Konecny, Philadelphia Flyers
Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche
Brad Marchand, Boston Bruins
Mitch Marner, Toronto Maple Leafs
Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers
Brayden Point, Tampa Bay Lightning
Sam Reinhart, Florida Panthers
Mark Stone, Vegas Golden Knights
Defenders:
Cale Makar, Colorado Avalanche
Josh Morrissey, Winnipeg Jets
Colton Parayko, St. Louis Blues
Alex Pietrangelo, Vegas Golden Knights
Travis Sanheim, Philadelphia Flyers
Shea Theodore, Vegas Golden Knights
Devon Toews, Colorado Avalanche
Goalkeepers:
Jordan Binnington, St. Louis Blues
Adin Hill, Vegas Golden Knights
Sam Montembeault, Montreal Canadiens
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Team North America forward Johnny Gaudreau, #13, and forward Auston Matthews, #34, celebrate Matthews’ goal against Team Czech Republic during the third period in a World Cup of Hockey pre-tournament game at CONSOL Energy Center on Sept. 14. , 2016 (encyclopedic entry). (Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports)
Team USA
Forward:
Matt Boldy, Minnesota Wild
Kyle Connor, Winnipeg Jets
Jack Eichel, Vegas Golden Knights
Jake Guentzel, Tampa Bay Lightning
Jack Hughes, New Jersey Devils
Chris Kreider, New York Rangers
Dylan Larkin, Detroit Red Wings
Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs
JT Miller, Vancouver Canucks
Brock Nelson, New York Islanders
Brady Tkachuk, Ottawa Senators
Matthew Tkachuk, Florida Panthers
Vincent Trocheck, New York Rangers
Defenders:
Brock Faber, Minnesota Wild
Adam Fox, New York Rangers
Noah Hanifin, Vegas Golden Knights
Quinn Hughes, Vancouver Canucks
Charlie McAvoy, Boston Bruins
Jaccob Slavin, Carolina Hurricanes
Zach Werenski, Columbus Blue Jackets
Goalkeepers:
Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets
Jake Oettinger, Dallas Stars
Jeremy Swayman, Boston Bruins
Team Finland
Forward:
Sebastian Aho, Carolina Hurricanes
Joel Armia, Montreal Canadiens
Aleksandar Barkov, Florida Panthers
Mikael Granlund, San Jose Sharks
Erik Haula, New Jersey Devils
Roope Hintz, Dallas Stars
Kaapo Kakko, Seattle Kraken
Patrick Laine, Montreal Canadiens
Arthur Lehkonen, Colorado Avalanche
Anton Lundell, Florida Panthers
Eetu Luostarinen, Florida Panthers
Mikko Rantanen, Colorado Avalanche
Teuvo Teravainen, Chicago Blackhawks
Defenders:
Jani Hakanpaa, Toronto Maple Leafs
Miro Heiskanen, Dallas Stars
Esa Lindell, Dallas Stars
Olli Maatta, Utah Hockey Club
Niko Mikkola, Florida Panthers
Rasmus Ristolainen, Philadelphia Flyers
Juuso Valimaki, Utah Hockey Club
Goalkeepers:
Kevin Lankinen, Vancouver Canucks
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Buffalo Sabres
Juuse Saros, Nashville Predators
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Team Europe forward Thomas Vanek, #26, tries to score against Team Sweden goaltender Henrik Lundqvist, #30, as defenseman Mattias Ekholm, #14, and forward Carl Soderberg, #34, look on in the semi-final game of the 2016 World Cup Hockey in Air Canada Center on September 25, 2016. (John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports)
Team Sweden
Forward:
Viktor Arvidsson, Edmonton Oilers
Jesper Bratt, New Jersey Devils
Leo Carlsson, Anaheim Ducks
Joel Eriksson Ek, Minnesota Wild
Filip Forsberg, Nashville Predators
William Karlsson, Vegas Golden Knights
Adrian Kempe, Los Angeles Kings
Elias Lindholm, Boston Bruins
William Nylander, Toronto Maple Leafs
Gustav Nyquist, Nashville Predators
Elias Pettersson, Vancouver Canucks
Lucas Raymond, Detroit Red Wings
Mika Zibanejad, New York Rangers
Defenders:
Rasmus Andersson, Calgary Flames
Jonas Brodin, Minnesota Wild
Rasmus Dahlin, Buffalo Sabres
Mattias Ekholm, Edmonton Oilers
Gustav Forsling, Florida Panthers
Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay Lightning
Erik Karlsson, Pittsburgh Penguins
Goalkeepers:
Filip Gustavsson, Minnesota Wild
Jacob Markstrom, New Jersey Devils
Linus Ullmark, Ottawa Senators
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