Team Canada wins 4 Nations Face-Off in overtime, defeating Team ...

February 20, 2025

Team Canada defeated Team USA 3-2 in overtime in the championship game of the 4 Nations Face-Off.

The game was a rematch of sorts, after an intense meeting between the hockey rivals in the preliminary stage of the tournament saw Team Canada fall 3-1 to the Americans. 

With the legendary rivalry between Canada and the USA fanned by the flames of tense international relations, this tournament seemed to have taken on significance beyond pride of sport, with fans of both nations deeply invested. 

The CN tower and Montreal’s Olympic stadium were lit up red and white ahead of the game, and the Empire State Building was lit up red, white, and blue. While the game took place at TD Garden in Boston, an influx of Canadian fans were there to support.

Earlier in the day, Team Canada head coach Jon Cooper announced that forward Travis Konecny would be swapped in favor of Seth Jarvis. A second change came a few minutes before the start of the match with defenseman Thomas Harley taking the place of Josh Morrissey, due to illness.

Team Canada’s chemistry has grown, on and off the ice, throughout the short tournament.

“I’ve never been a part of a team that has gotten this close, this fast,” Cooper said ahead of the game. 

To give a sense of how seriously the players were taking this game—Team Canada forward Nathan MacKinnon described his pre-game nerves as the same as those of a Stanley Cup final.

And it was MacKinnon who was the first to strike, leading off the scoring for Team Canada within the first five minutes of play. MacKinnon’s shot from the top of the face-off circle beat American goaltender Connor Hellebuyck, who was unable to locate the puck. Thomas Harley and Sam Reinhart recorded assists on the goal.

Team USA equalized in the final minutes of the first period, with Brady Tkachuk slipping one past Jordan Binnington, assisted by Team USA captain, Auston Matthews.

The teams headed to the dressing room at the end of the first period with the score tied, and Canada leading the USA in shots 11-10.

The next goal also belonged to the Americans. Jake Sanderson took the lead for Team USA at 7:32, off of a rebound from Matthews. Zach Werenski was awarded the secondary assist.

Sam Bennett brought it back to a tie game with a beauty of a shot over the shoulder of Hellebuyck. Bennett was set up by a pass from Mitch Marner, Team Canada’s overtime goal scorer against Sweden earlier in the tournament.

Once again, the end of the period found the score tied, and this time the shots as well, 19-19.

It was a frenetic third period, but despite high-danger chances from both teams, the clock ran down on 60 minutes of play with the score still tied 2-2. Team USA led in shots, 27-23. One can only imagine the mood in the dressing rooms.

Championship overtime play means five-on-five for as long as it takes, but it only took Connor McDavid eight minutes and eighteen seconds to crown Team Canada champions of the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament.

Jordan Binnington, who held the net for Team Canada in all four games of the tournament rose to the challenge when it mattered with 31 saves. Nathan MacKinnon was named MVP of the tournament.

With Sidney Crosby and Drew Doughty as the only players with Olympic experience, for the majority of Team Canada, the award presentation was their first time having a medal placed around their neck while wearing a Team Canada jersey. It was a visibly emotional moment for many of them.

While American fans may have booed the Canadian national anthem at the beginning of the night, those boos were silenced as O Canada rang loud and true through to the rafters of TD Garden, and each player took their turn hoisting the trophy.

For all those for whom this tournament has been a welcome shot of adrenaline, and who can’t wait to see Team Canada back in action, it won’t be too long until best-on-best hockey is back again! NHL players will return to the Olympic Games at Milano Cortina 2026 for the first time since Sochi 2014. The preliminary round of the men’s tournament will begin in less than a year, on February 11, 2026.