Canada's Brad Marchand Calls Team USA The Best Team He Has Ever Played By Far

There's been some smack talk going into the finale of the NHL's 4 Nations Face-Off between the US and Canada, which shouldn't be much of a surprise given they're two of the biggest rivals on the international stage.

But, what might be surprising, is that there have been some compliments too.

And, even more surprising those compliments came courtesy of Canada's Brad Marchand.

Yes, that Brad Marchand.

The Bruins captain and notorious pest talked about Team USA on Wednesday and offered one massive compliment.

"They’re by far the best that I’ve played," Marchand said, per Sportsnet. "No disrespect to the previous teams, but the way the game has evolved the past 10 years, some of the players on their team will be some of the best players to ever play the game of hockey." 

(Photo by Brian Babineau/4NFO/World Cup of Hockey via Getty Images) and (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Marchand continued by talking about something that seemed like it would be true when Team USA's roster was announced, and has since proven to be true on the ice: this team is complete.

"They embody a team that competes at the highest level," Marchand said. "They have everything. They check well, they play physical, they have incredible talent, the defensemen on their team can all skate, they’re all good size, and their goaltending is also incredible. 

"So, they don’t have any weaknesses. Just their skill level is incredible to watch. You look at them and you look at that team and there’s nothing wrong with it. It’s definitely the best that I’ve seen, really that I think I’ve ever played against."

We're getting to see an unprecedented level of greatness all on one sheet of ice sheet, and it's pretty cool to see that the players recognize that too.

Saturday's game was an instant classic, and I think we're in for more of that on Thursday night in Boston.