Ranking every player in the 4 Nations Face-Off: Where do Hellebuyck, Makar and Barkov land?
The 4 Nations Face-Off is less than a week away, with Canada and Sweden meeting in the first matchup on Feb. 12. The United States and Finland follow up on Feb. 13 (8 p.m. ET, ESPN/E+), with the championship game set for Feb. 20 in Boston (8 p.m. ET, ABC/E+).
There will be 92 players representing the four countries in the inaugural tournament. How do all the players stack up with each other? (Note: There are currently only 91 players because Canada hasn’t replaced Alex Pietrangelo.)
We asked a panel of more than 50 ESPN broadcasters, analysts, reporters and editors to rate players based on how good they will be in the 4 Nations Face-Off.
Write-ups for the top 40 in the rankings are courtesy of ESPN reporters Ryan S. Clark, Kristen Shilton and Greg Wyshynski.
His partnership with Cale Makar has led to them not only being one of the NHL’s best pairings, but also one who can play in every scenario. — Clark
Preseason rank: 41
McAvoy can match up with any teammate — and across from any opponent — to be one of Team USA’s brightest stars on defense. His transition game is elite and McAvoy will open up space for Team USA’s forwards while also providing his own offense. — Shilton
Preseason rank: NR 41
The Wild goalie has put up strong numbers as the team’s primary starter, ranking in the top 15 in goals saved above replacement. Plus, if the Swedes need more offense, Gus is their guy, with a goal and an assist this season for Minnesota. — Wyshynski
Preseason rank: 36
Even though the Predators have struggled, Saros has remained a constant as he’s played in all but 11 of their games. — Clark
Preseason rank: 24
While this season has proven challenging, Pettersson has had moments when he’s looked close to the player who scored 102 points two seasons ago. That version of Pettersson could determine how far Sweden goes in the 4 Nations Face-Off. — Clark
Preseason rank: 37
Dahlin is second to Erik Karlsson for scoring by a Swedish defenseman over the last three seasons. — Wyshynski
Preseason rank: 53
Whether it’s in 5-on-5, the power play or the penalty kill, Faber has proven he can be trusted to play heavy minutes in all scenarios. — Clark
Preseason rank: 49
The speedy center had heated up as the Red Wings have climbed back into the playoff race in the East, with 9 goals in 14 games during January. — Wyshynski
Preseason rank: 43
Morrissey combines high-end defensive skills with a strong offensive upside and that’s what will help drive Canada’s contributions from the backend in this tourrnament. He’s quick, smart and super competitive. — Shilton
Preseason rank: 43
The Golden Knights defenseman is on pace to shatter his career high in points, with 45 in his first 53 games, making him a top-three scorer for Vegas this season. — Wyshynski
Preseason rank: 39
Hintz is one of the most underrated goal-scorers in the NHL, with three straight 30-goal seasons and on his way to a fourth with 22 goals in his first 48 games. — Wyshynski
Preseason rank: 86
Raymond is a highly-skilled winger who has followed up a breakout 31-goal season with another strong offensive campaign for the Red Wings. — Wyshynski
Preseason rank: 85
Kempe has been a top-line goal-scoring winger for the Los Angeles Kings over the last four seasons thanks to his swift skating. — Wyshynski
Preseason rank: 18
Guentzel is opportunistic and a brilliant finisher with the puck. It’s no wonder then he can easily average over a point per game and pairs relatively well with just about anyone. The ability to form quick chemistry will be imperative now and Team USA will be counting on Guentzel to make that magic happen. — Shilton
Preseason rank: 29
Canada boasts one of the game’s best two-way forwards in Stone to anchor its bottom-six forward group. The veteran is also an excellent playmaker who can frustrate opponents in the corners and break up plays in transition. — Shilton
Preseason rank: 28
Miller won’t be sweating any trade rumors now and is free to be the versatile asset Team USA needs. He can play center or on the wing, and combines good speed with a heavy shot and physical presence. Whatever the USA has to dial up, count on Miller to be a significant factor in the team’s offensive success. — Shilton
24. Adam Fox, D, United States
Preseason rank: 38
Fox has three straight 70-plus point seasons, playing in all situations for the Rangers. — Wyshynski
Preseason rank: 34
Forsberg’s offensive prowess has him on pace for his third season of more than 80 points in the last four years. — Clark
Preseason rank: 79
Bratt is one of the NHL’s most explosive stickhandling wingers, playing at nearly a point-per-game pace over his last three seasons. — Wyshynski
Preseason rank: 19
Aho is an elite two-way center on a Finland team that already boasts another such rarity in Aleksander Barkov. So watch out. Aho is a premier scorer and playmaker who handles every responsibility with apparent ease. His penalty killing isn’t bad either. This may be the flashiest Fin of them all — Shilton
Preseason rank: 58
Now that Connor is fully healthy, he’s on pace for his first 100-point season as the Jets remain in contention for the NHL’s top record. — Clark
Preseason rank: 32
Nylander is crafting a career year offensively in Toronto while continuing to show his growth at both ends of the ice — which has only made the Swede more dangerous. He’s also been a cunning threat and his penchant this season especially for creating — and capitalizing on — breakaway goals should have the other three teams on high alert. — Shilton
Preseason rank: 74
Werenski has been the Columbus Blue Jackets’ MVP this season, leading his team in scoring as a defenseman and logging nearly 27 minutes per game. — Wyshynski
Preseason rank: 25
Ottawa’s captain is known for his passion and typical Tkachukian grit. But Tkachuk is more than just a younger Matthew — he’s a tenacious skater who can drive any line and elevate teammates. When Team USA players needs a sparkplug, they’ll have it every shift doled out to Tkachuk. — Shilton
Preseason rank: 21
Canada coach Jon Cooper knows exactly what he’ll get from Point — and it’s a top-tier performance. Point is versatile and determined, strategic and quick on pucks, and always (seemingly) one step ahead of an opponent’s defense. It’s what helps drive the Lightning’s offense and could be a game changer for Canada. — Shilton
Preseason rank: 30
It’s hardly overreaching to say Reinhart has become one of the best fowards in the game. He’s coming off a 94-point season and is on pace to hit terrific numbers again as a savvy, high-octane scorer who doesn’t skimp on the defensive side, either. Reinhart is one of Canada’s most well-rounded skaters. — Shilton
Preseason rank: 23
Several items have come to define Hedman throughout his illustrious career. Consistency is among them. That consistency has allowed the Lightning to remain an Eastern Conference challenger and could give Sweden a path to the championship game. — Clark
Preseason rank: 8
Rantanen’s recent trade to the Carolina Hurricanes means he’s now going to be the primary focal point. It’ll be the same way for Finland too. The hulking winger has established himself as one of the game’s strongest facilitators while consistently proving that he can score just as many goals as he creates. — Clark
Preseason rank: 16
It’s never been a question of talent for Eichel. It’s been more of a conversation about what he could do with that talent. What he’s done for the Golden Knights is emerge as a top-line center who can be trusted in every situation in a way that makes him a factor each time he steps on to the ice. It’s also another reason why he’s in the running for the Hart Trophy. — Clark
Preseason rank: 5
Tkachuk can (and does) do it all on the ice and that will continue to be his superpower in this tournament. Whether it’s channeling his physicality around the net, terrorizing the defense with his scoring skills or separating himself as a playmaker, Tkachuk’s teammates know they’ll get a determined effort from him in every game. — Shilton
Preseason rank: 15
Hughes is a dominant passer who will push the pace for the U.S. up front and create his own chances along the way. New Jersey’s star skater is dangerous in all three zones and should pad his team’s transition game with a top-end level of speed. Somehow, Hughes makes it all look effortless. — Shilton
Preseason rank: 14
Marner won’t be taking a back seat to anyone on Canada’s roster given the level of skill and talent he’s bringing. The winger is a powerhouse at even strength and on the power play. He can eat up shorthanded minutes. And did we mention the playmaking? It’s second to none in the league — and this tournament. — Shilton
Preseason rank: 13
If Crosby’s done anything this year it’s show why he can never be counted out. In a horrific year for Pittsburgh at large, Crosby has kept producing and continuously wills his team into the fight. It’s that latter leadership ability that could benefit Canada most and is a key reason why, whether Crosby falls into a top-six or more complementary role, he’s an indispensable piece of the lineup. — Shilton
Preseason rank: 10
Barkov is doing what Barkov does best this season. He’s averaging a point per game while still operating as one the game’s strongest two-way forwards. Knowing that Finland could have Barkov anchoring a line with Rantanen is the sort of combination that could see them go far in the tournament. — Clark
Preseason rank: 12
For all the challenges facing the Canucks, Hughes’s performance this season hasn’t been one of them. The reigning Norris Trophy winner looks like he could collect the award again as he’s on pace for a second straight 90-point season while keeping the Canucks in the race for a playoff spot. — Clark
Preseason rank: 6
Matthews was tapped as Team USA’s captain for a reason — he’s made the most of this injury-plagued NHL campaign as a point-per-game skater who, as ever, can tilt the ice in his team’s favor. And that shot? It’s lethal as ever — just like Matthews is proving to be. — Shilton
Preseason rank: 3
The reigning Hart Trophy winner for the NHL’s MVP, MacKinnon is having the sort of season that could see him repeat that feat. He leads the NHL in points and his all-around play could help Canada challenge for a 4 Nations title. — Clark
Preseason rank: 31
What he did last season saw Hellebuyck win his second Vezina Trophy. What he’s done this year has allowed him to have what might be the best season of his career and could see him win more than just a third Vezina. — Clark
Preseason rank: 4
Makar’s ability to impact several facets of the game is what makes him one of the NHL’s best players at any position. Already teammates with MacKinnon, having those two on the ice along with McDavid for a power play could cause quite a few problems. — Clark
Preseason rank: 1
His status as the game’s best player has been consistently cemented by the fact he’s finished with more than 100 points seven times in his career. McDavid is on pace for a fifth straight season of more than 100 points, which only adds to the intrigue of what he could achieve at the 4 Nations Face-Off. — Clark
SUNRISE, Fla. — Auston Matthews hadn’t scored against Florida in more than a year. He ended the drought — and might have also saved Toronto’s season.
Matthews got his first goal of the series to break a scoreless tie in the third period, Joseph Woll stopped 22 shots and the Toronto Maple Leafs kept their season alive by beating the Florida Panthers 2-0 in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference semifinal series Friday night.
“Just a gutsy, gutsy win,” Matthews said.
Game 7 is Sunday night in Toronto. The winner will face Carolina in the East final.
“We played a simple game tonight,” Leafs coach Craig Berube said.
Simple, but effective. Toronto blocked 31 shots, plus killed off all four Florida power plays.
Max Pacioretty added an insurance goal for the Maple Leafs, who improved to 4-2 when facing elimination since the start of the 2023 playoffs.
Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 15 shots for the Panthers, the defending Stanley Cup champions who oddly are only 8-7 in potential closeout games over the past three postseasons.
“You win or you learn,” Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov said. “Tonight, we learned.”
Florida coach Paul Maurice is 5-0 in Game 7s, including the final game of last season’s Stanley Cup Final. The Panthers are 3-1 all time in the ultimate game of a series — 2-0 on the road — while the Maple Leafs have lost each of their past six Game 7s. Of those, four were against Boston and now-Panthers forward Brad Marchand.
“We’re not going to show any video of those Game 7s,” Maurice said. “We’ll look at our game tonight and see where we can get better.”
It was the 68th game of this season’s playoffs — and only the second that was 0-0 after 40 minutes. The other was Wednesday night, when Edmonton eliminated Vegas with a 1-0 victory in overtime in Game 5 of that Western Conference semifinal series.
Toronto had five goals in Game 1, four more in Game 2 and had three by the early goings of the second period of Game 3. Add it up, and that was 12 in basically the first seven periods of the series.
From there, Toronto got basically nothing — until Matthews broke through.
The Toronto captain was 0-for-31 on shots against Florida this season, including the regular season. Bobrovsky had stopped 85 of the last 86 shot attempts he had seen in the series. And the Maple Leafs hadn’t had the lead in basically the equivalent of 3½ games — 216 minutes, 30 seconds, to be precise.
But when a pass got away from Florida’s Aaron Ekblad, Matthews had a slight opening — and that was all he needed. A low shot skittered along the ice and beat Bobrovsky for a 1-0 lead with 13:40 left.
“It’s a big win, from top to bottom,” Matthews said. “We earned that.”
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