4 Nations, 1 Goal: What to Know About The 4 Nations Face-Off

Best-on-best hockey will take the world’s stage for the 4 Nations Face-Off, an inaugural international tournament in 2025. In lieu of the annual NHL All-Star Game, the 4 Nations Face-Off will treat hockey fans to the league’s first midseason tournament, where top players representing Canada, Finland, Sweden and the United States will battle from February 12-20, 2025.

Before the puck drops on this global tournament, here’s everything you need to know about the 4 Nations Face-Off.

What is the 4 Nations Face-Off?

The 4 Nations Face-Off is a new, international ice hockey tournament featuring NHL players selected into four squads representing Canada, Finland, Sweden and the United States. The inaugural 2025 tournament is set to be held from February 12 to 20 between Montreal’s Centre Bell, home of the Montreal Canadiens, and Boston, Massachusetts’ TD Garden, home of the Boston Bruins, and. Across the eight-day event, every country will face each other once, followed by a final championship for a total of seven games.

For the 4 Nations Face-Off, each team consists of 23 NHL players, including 20 skaters and three goalies. The four participating countries were chosen from an international ranking by the neutral International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), while also accounting for which countries could fill an entire roster with NHL players. Roster spots were determined by a country’s respective national ice hockey federation: Hockey Canada, the Finnish Ice Hockey Association, the Swedish Ice Hockey Association and USA Hockey. To qualify, players needed to be signed to an NHL contract for the 2024-25 season and part of an NHL roster as of December 2, 2024.

More broadly, the 4 Nations Face-Off marks a major reintroduction to international ice hockey competition for the NHL, which has not allowed its players to participate in the Winter Olympics since 2014. With NHL players approved to compete in the 2026 and 2030 Winter Olympics, as well as the revamped World Cup of Hockey in 2028 and 2032, the 4 Nations Face-Off serves as the first of many upcoming, global, best-on-best tournaments featuring NHL players.

4 Nations Face-Off Tournament Structure

The inaugural 4 Nations Face-Off features two rounds of seven games total. The exhibition series begins with a round-robin of six games, with each country playing the opposing team once. A point system will determine which countries advance to the championship game; a team will earn three points for a regulation win, two points for an overtime or shootout win or one point for an overtime or shootout loss. No points are awarded for a loss in regulation. After the first round, the two teams with the most points compete in the single-game 4-Nations Face-Off championship.

In the event of overtime during the first round, teams will play one 10-minute, three-on-three sudden death period, followed by a three-round shootout if necessary. Overtime rules in the 4 Nations Face-Off final will adjust to continuous 20-minute, five-on-five, sudden-death periods.

Why does the NHL have a midseason tournament?

For the 2024-25 NHL season, the 4 Nations Face-Off temporarily replaces the league’s typical midseason break for All-Star Weekend. However, the extended exhibition series also lends itself as a trial run for the NHL’s future participation in international best-on-best tournaments. For the first time since 2014, the NHL will allow players to compete in the Winter Olympics in 2026, which would occupy roughly the same mid-February timeframe as the 4-Nations Face-Off.

Although the NHL has additionally approved player participation in the 2030 Winter Olympics and the World Cup of Hockey in 2028 and 2032, the 4 Nations Face-Off presents the league’s opportunity to build its own international, best-on-best tournament.

4 Nations Face-Off FAQs

When is the 4 Nations Face-Off?

The 4 Nations Face-Off tournament will be held from February 12 to 20, 2025. First-round matchups for the 2025 series will be played on February 12, 13, 15 and 17, while the championship game is scheduled for February 20.

Where is the 4 Nations Face-Off Taking Place?

The 4 Nations Face-Off will take place in two locations: Centre Bell in Montreal, Quebec, Canada and TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. Montreal will host tournament matchups on February 12, 13 and 15, while Boston takes the final first-round games on February 17 and the championship face-off on February 20.

How Many Teams are in the 4 Nations Face-Off?

Four teams of 23 NHL players will compete in the 4 Nations Face-Off, representing the U.S., Canada, Finland and Sweden. To find the full, up-to-date roster for each country’s team, visit the official website.

How Many Rounds are in the 4 Nations Face-Off?

The 4 Nations Face-Off comprises of two rounds: a round-robin tournament featuring three games per team with one matchup against each country, followed by the championship game.

What Do the Winners of the 4 Nations Face-Off Receive?

Winners of the 4 Nations Face-Off will hoist the tournament trophy, which has yet to debut. Players on the winning team are also expected to receive championship medals as well as an unspecified amount of bonus money.

4 Nations Face-Off Rosters

Rosters are subject to change.

Canada

Forwards
Sam Bennett, Florida Panthers
Anthony Cirelli, Tampa Bay Lightning
Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins
Brandon Hagel, Tampa Bay Lightning
Seth Jarvis, Carolina Hurricanes
Travis Konecny, Philadelphia Flyers
Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche
Brad Marchand, Boston Bruins
Mitch Marner, Toronto Maple Leafs
Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers
Brayden Point, Tampa Bay Lightning
Sam Reinhart, Florida Panthers
Mark Stone, Vegas Golden Knights

Defensemen
Drew Doughty, Los Angeles Kings
Cale Makar, Colorado Avalanche
Josh Morrissey, Winnipeg Jets
Colton Parayko, St. Louis Blues
Travis Sanheim, Philadelphia Flyers
Shea Theodore, Vegas Golden Knights
Devon Toews, Colorado Avalanche

Goalies
Jordan Binnington, St. Louis Blues
Adin Hill, Vegas Golden Knights
Sam Montembeault, Montreal Canadiens

Finland

Forwards
Sebastian Aho, Carolina Hurricanes
Joel Armia, Montreal Canadiens
Aleksander Barkov, Florida Panthers
Mikael Granlund, San Jose Sharks
Erik Haula, New Jersey Devils
Roope Hintz, Dallas Stars
Kaapo Kakko, Seattle Kraken
Patrik Laine, Montreal Canadiens
Artturi Lehkonen, Colorado Avalanche
Anton Lundell, Florida Panthers
Eetu Luostarinen, Florida Panthers
Mikko Rantanen, Colorado Avalanche
Teuvo Teravainen, Chicago Blackhawks

Defensemen
Henri Jokiharju, Buffalo Sabres
Esa Lindell, Dallas Stars
Olli Maatta, Utah Hockey Club
Nikolas Matinpalo, Ottawa Senators
Niko Mikkola, Florida Panthers
Urho Vaakanainen, New York Rangers
Juuso Valimaki, Utah Hockey Club

Goalies
Kevin Lankinen, Vancouver Canucks
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Buffalo Sabres
Juuse Saros, Nashville Predators

Sweden

Forwards
Viktor Arvidsson, Edmonton Oilers
Jesper Bratt, New Jersey Devils
Leo Carlsson, Anaheim Ducks
Joel Eriksson Ek, Minnesota Wild
Filip Forsberg, Nashville Predators
Adrian Kempe, Los Angeles Kings
Elias Lindholm, Boston Bruins
William Nylander, Toronto Maple Leafs
Gustav Nyquist, Nashville Predators
Elias Pettersson, Vancouver Canucks
Lucas Raymond, Detroit Red Wings
Rickard Rakell, Pittsburgh Penguins
Mika Zibanejad, New York Rangers

Defensemen
Rasmus Andersson, Calgary Flames
Jonas Brodin, Minnesota Wild
Rasmus Dahlin, Buffalo Sabres
Mattias Ekholm, Edmonton Oilers
Gustav Forsling, Florida Panthers
Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay Lightning
Erik Karlsson, Pittsburgh Penguins

Goalies
Samuel Ersson, Philadelphia Flyers
Filip Gustavsson, Minnesota Wild
Linus Ullmark, Ottawa Senators

United States

Forwards
Matt Boldy, Minnesota Wild
Kyle Connor, Winnipeg Jets
Jack Eichel, Vegas Golden Knights
Jake Guentzel, Tampa Bay Lightning
Jack Hughes, New Jersey Devils
Chris Kreider, New York Rangers
Dylan Larkin, Detroit Red Wings
Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs
J.T. Miller, Vancouver Canucks
Brock Nelson, New York Islanders
Brady Tkachuk, Ottawa Senators
Matthew Tkachuk, Florida Panthers
Vincent Trocheck, New York Rangers

Defensemen
Brock Faber, Minnesota Wild
Adam Fox, New York Rangers
Noah Hanifin, Vegas Golden Knights
Charlie McAvoy, Boston Bruins
Jake Sanderson, Ottawa Senators
Jaccob Slavin, Carolina Hurricanes
Zach Werenski, Columbus Blue Jackets

Goalies
Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets
Jake Oettinger, Dallas Stars
Jeremy Swayman, Boston Bruins