Canada wins the first 4 Nations Face-Off title in hockey by beating the USA in overtime.
The result was the end of a tournament in the middle of the season that had stars from Canada, Finland, Sweden, and the US, and the mood was surprisingly political.
The first-ever 4 Nations Face-Off hockey game was won by Canada over the USA on Thursday. It was the end of a heated and politically charged event.
One goal in extra time by Connor McDavid gave Canada a 3-2 win at the TD Garden Arena in Boston. Ticket prices went through the roof in the days leading up to the highly awaited finale.
It was the end of an event in the middle of the season that had stars from the US, Canada, Finland, and Sweden. Thursday’s game is one of the most important international hockey games in years. Canada’s Nathan MacKinnon scored the first goal of the game at 4:48 in a game that could be a taste of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina. The win means the world to the group and is unique. The U.S. evened things up with a goal from Brady Tkachuk.
It was 7:31 into the second period when the U.S. took its first lead. Zach Werenski’s slapshot was stopped, and the ball went to Matthews. He tried to pass the puck across the goal, but Jake Sanderson blocked it and put it in on a snap shot. It was his first goal of the event.
With six minutes left in the second quarter, Canada tied the game. Sam Bennett was found by Mitch Marner on the left wing. Bennett fired a wrist shot past Hellebuyck.
At 8:18 of extra, McDavid scored a one-timer with help from Marner to win it.
McDavid, the great player for the Edmonton Oilers who many people think is the best player in the NHL, said that his play up to that point was “not very good.”
“All I could think about was keeping going,” he said after the game. The NHL prioritized the 4 Nations event over the traditional All-Star Game this season, as players will be allowed to compete in the Winter Olympics in 2026.
Many years, players longed for important games to play for their country. Now, they will have the chance to compete for international bragging rights. Fans, players, and officials have all said how intense and good the games have been so far.
Since there are still political problems between the US and Canada, the stakes were raised even more. In the past few weeks, President Donald Trump has pushed the idea that Canada should become the “51st state” of the United States and asked hockey great Wayne Gretzky to be the prime minister of Canada. Trump has said he will use “economic force” against the country and threatened import taxes on a wide range of goods in order to take over the U.S.’s northern neighbour.
Because of this, people in Canada have been booing the American national song at sporting events over the last few weeks, including at the most recent game between the USA and Canada on Saturday in Montreal.
Many players on the Canadian team play for NHL teams in the U.S., and some players on the American team play for NHL teams in Canada. Both sets of players spoke out against the booing during the song. While the U.S. won the game 3-1 on Saturday, there were three fights between U.S. and Canadian players right after the puck dropped.