The 2025 4 Nations Face-off will occur in February at the Bell Centre in Montreal and TD Garden in Boston. Four games will be held at the Bell Centre and three at TD Garden. Both locations have deep roots in the history of hockey. The Face-off is an international tournament where NHL players from the U.S., Canada, Sweden, and Finland will take part. Each team consists of 23 players who are selected by the National Associations of each country.
The rules and format
The players play the games according to NHL rules. Each team will play three games in the form of a ‘round-robin.’ The top two teams will then compete in a final. National teams get three points for a regulation win, two points for an overtime victory, zero points for a regulation loss, and one point for an overtime loss. Top NHL stars will play for their countries internationally for the first time since the 2016 World Cup.
The U.S. is a current favorite on the odds board with Canada not far behind. What is great about America’s sports betting is that there are so many types of bets sports bettors can place, including a variety of prop bets.
Why these four nations?
Choosing only four nations is for practical reasons. There must be enough NHL players to complete each roster. Opting for the four-team format ensures the event features the most NHL stars for now, with plans to include more countries in the future.
Players to watch
If you have the schedule and how to watch, you can see your favorite players compete for national glory. Austin Matthews scored 160 goals in the past three NHL seasons and did so in only 226 games. This lethal goal scorer will be the captain of the U.S. team. He could just lead the team to international glory. Other U.S. players to watch are Matthew Tkachuk and Quinn Hughes.
Connor McDavid is one of the best players on the Canadian team. It’s the first time he will be playing on the international stage since the 2018 IIHF World Championship. Cale Makar is another electrifying player. This season he ranks first among defensemen in goals and second in points. Nathan MacKinnon leads the NHL in points and his all-around play could help Canada. Sydney Crosby is a three-time Stanley Cup champion and brings veteran leadership to the team.
The Swedish team is known for its technical precision and has lots of defensive talent. Victor Hedman will be Sweden’s captain, and he was part of the teams that won the Stanley Cup in 2020 and 2021. Elias Pettersson, Mika Zibanejad, and Rasmus Dahlin are other players to watch.
Injuries have weakened the Finnish blue line, and the team is likely to lean heavily on Alexander Barkoff. Mikko Rantanen is a focal point of the offense and Sebastian Aho is a dynamic forward. Juuse Saros will be crucial to Finland’s success.
Keep an eye out for the underdogs
This isn’t a tournament between two teams even though a lot of attention is on the U.S. and Canada with venues in Boston and Montreal. The last time Canada failed to win a best-on-best tournament was at the 2006 Olympics, where Sweden claimed victory by defeating Finland in the final.
An appetizer for Olympic and World Cup events
It will be great to see the best players in these countries going against one another and a wider fanbase will be able to watch thanks to sports streaming.
The NHL hasn’t shut down so its skaters can participate in an Olympics since 2014. Top players have been championing a return to the Olympics and finally, the league is partnering with the IIHF to make that happen in 2026 and 2030. The 4 Nations Face-off will give players a taste of the best-on-best style of play.