Here Are The Rosters For The NHL's New 4 Nations Face-Off Tournament

The NHL will try something new this season when instead of the typical All-Star Game we're accustomed to, we'll be treated to a new best-on-best international tournament called the 4 Nations Face-Off and we now know which players will be representing the four countries involved: the United States, Canada, Sweden and Finland.

This is the league's first international tournament since the World Cup of Hockey in 2016, and will serve as an appetizer of sorts before the NHL has its players return to the Olympics in 2026; the first time that has happened since the 2014 Games.

While some players were announced as being part of their respective teams already — some were obvious like Connor McDavid and Sidney Crosby for Canada or Auston Mathews for Team USA, while others were a bit more controversial *cough*Erik Karlsson for Sweden*cough* — but the full rosters are out.

Finland and Sweden were announced earlier in the day with the announcements for the US and Canada being held until just before puck drop for the night's first batch of games.

So, let's take a quick look at who will be suiting up for the tournament.

Sweden

Alright, first, it took me a second to realize this roster is in alphabetical order by columns because when I first looked at it, my reaction was, "William Nylander is the extra forward?!"

Then I took a second look and realized that was not true…

There are some offensive weapons on that roster, but what jumped out to me was Sweden's blue line. That country has pumped out some stellar puck-moving defensemen and they've got a bunch of them, including Erik Karlsson — who like I mentioned was a controversial choice, but on a team better than the Penguins I think you'll get more out of him — and Victor Hedman.

Goaltending looks rock solid too with Filip Gustavsson (the league leader in goals-against average and save percentage), Jacob Markstrom, and Linus Ullmark.

I think Sweden could be a dark horse to win this tournament, but it's all going to come down to getting the right line combinations right off the bat to maximize scoring, and there's not a lot of time to do that.

Finland

Finland doesn't have the crazy depth that Sweden has, but the dudes at the top are absolute studs and I can assure you they will produce once this tournament gets rolling.

Aleksander Barkov — despite being the captain of the reigning Stanley Cup champions — continues to be one of the league's most underrated players, while Sebastian Aho (the Hurricanes one) is such a dynamic, fun player to watch.

The defense looks solid, and they've got some size with Rasmus Ristolainen who is having a good year in Philly this season. Meanwhile, the team's three goaltenders — Juuse Saros, Kevin Lankinen, and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen — while not delivering Earth-shattering numbers this season should be decent, and I'd expect Saros to do a lot of the heavy lifting in what will be a pretty short tournament.

Canada

There are some big names on Team Canada — Crosby, McDavid, MacKinnon, Makar — but let's start with a notable name not on the roster: Connor Bedard.

The reigning Calder Trophy winner is having a rough year, and it's widely believed he didn't do enough to earn a spot this year, which, as a fan, is great to hear. It means that everyone wants to win this tournament and no one will make the roster just because they're popular. They've got to earn it.

A fun subplot will be Sam Bennet of the Florida Panthers and Boston Bruins captain Brad Marchand having to play nice after Bennett threw what many perceived to be a cheap shot on Marchand during the playoffs last season.

There are some big-minute defensemen on that roster in Travis Sanheim and Cale Makar, both of whom are No. 4 and No. 8 respectively for average time on ice per game.

What is unusual is that without a doubt given the offensive firepower both up front and on the blue line and a strong set of defensemen, goaltending will be the Achilles heel for Team Canada. Sure there are Cup winners in Blues goalie Jordan Binnington and Vegas' Adin Hill, but neither one is playing at that level this season.

I think Canada will need to lean on offense, but that could be tough up against teams with better goaltending including…

United States

Team USA's three goalies are an embarrassment of riches.

Winnipeg's Connor Hellebuyck and Dallas' Jake Oettinger don't just have names that are very difficult to spell, they're also top 10 in the league for both goals against average and save percentage. Then, while Boston's Jeremy Swayman hasn't been lights out this, he's a solid third option for the team.

Upfront, this team is just ridiculous: Jack Hughes, Auston Mathews, Jack Eichel, Matthew Tkachuk, Brady Tkachuk, Brock Nelson and more.

Just gross.

Interesting, Vancouver forward JT Miller is on the roster. He is away from the Canucks indefinitely due to personal reasons, but hopefully, he'll be back for the tournament.

On defense, Ranger Adam Fox, Bruin Charlie McAvoy, and reigning Norris Trophy-winner Quinn Hughes will log some big minutes and certainly contribute on offense as well.

This tournament is going to be a lot of fun, but if I had to call it on paper, Team USA is coming in as the favorite in my opinion.

However, the biggest X-factor will be whether or not the team — or any team in the tournament for that matter — can gel quickly enough to win the first-ever 4 Nations Face-Off.

The tournament will run from Feb. 12-20 in Boston and Montreal.