Earlier this year the NHL announced that there will be a “Four-Nations Face-Off” next February. The four nations that will compete in the tournament are Canada, U.SA., Sweden, and Finland and the rosters of these teams will be made up entirely of NHL players.
As an American hockey fan my dream is to see the Americans win as many international tournaments as possible. Sadly, I haven’t seen too many big wins. However, the United States has recently been able to produce loads of high-caliber talent in the NHL and has American hockey fans like myself believing that there are big wins in the near future.
I’m not going to sit here and say that them winning the Four Nations Face-Off would be life changing to me, but I feel that a win in this tournament could help set the groundwork for big years to come, especially in the 2026 Winter Olympics.
Below is my prediction as of May 2024 to how the United States will lineup at the Four-Nations Face-Off next February!
NOTE: This roster will look a bit different from my Olympic roster prediction due to how things have gone since I initially posted that one last summer.
FIRST LINE
BRADY TKACHUK – AUSTON MATTHEWS – MATTHEW TKACHUK
Most people probably would want to split up the Tkachuk brothers, but I’m different. I want both of them out on the ice at the same time causing chaos every shift. They also will be centered by the best American born player in the NHL currently and he’ll need protection. The Tkachuk brothers can win puck battles and they can feed the best goal scorer on the planet to light the lamp.
SECOND LINE
JASON ROBERTSON – JACK HUGHES – CLAYTON KELLER
May 23, 2023; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Stars left wing Jason Robertson (21) waits for the face-off against the Vegas Golden Knights during the third period in game three of the Western Conference Finals of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
I probably have Keller higher in the lineup than most but I like what he could be capable of playing with better players than he typically does in Arizona (or Utah). Robertson can be a 100+ point player in the NHL and Hughes nearly hit that mark in the 22-23 season. Having two players capable of scoring 100 points on a second line isn’t a bad thing to have.
THIRD LINE
KYLE CONNOR – JACK EICHEL – TAGE THOMPSON
BUFFALO, NEW YORK – DECEMBER 01: Tage Thompson #72 of the Buffalo Sabres celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Colorado Avalanche at KeyBank Center on December 01, 2022 in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Joshua Bessex/Getty Images)
Jack Eichel centering a third line that has wingers capable of scoring 40+ goals. They can be a headache to third pairing d-men on other teams.
FOURTH LINE
DYLAN LARKIN – J.T. MILLER – ALEX DEBRINCAT
Nov 4, 2023; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Red Wings center Dylan Larkin (71) celebrates his goal with teammates during the third period against the Boston Bruins at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports
All-Star loaded teams also need players capable of killing penalties and Larkin and Miller bring that to this lineup. We’ll then sprinkle in Larkin’s lineup in Detroit in DeBrincat to bring some chemistry to this fourth line.
NOTABLE FORWARDS LEFT OFF:
JAKE GUENTZEL, PATRICK KANE, CHRIS KREIDER, JOHNNY GAUDREAU, COLE CAUFIELD, BROCK BOESER
FIRST DEFENSE PAIRING
JACCOB SLAVIN – ADAM FOX
May 14, 2022; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Jaccob Slavin (74) and Boston Bruins left wing Jake DeBrusk (74) battle over the puck during the first period in game seven of the first round of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs at PNC Arena. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports
Slavin is, to me, the best American defenseman on the left hand side and it’s a toss up between Fox and McAvoy on the right side. I went with Fox here to complement Slavin on the top American pair.
SECOND DEFENSE PAIRING
ZACH WERENSKI – CHARLIE MCAVOY
Apr 6, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy (73) shoots the puck during the third period against the Florida Panthers at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
I love the idea of Werenski and McAvoy on the second pairing. Both are really good defensemen and will be looking to bounce back this upcoming season. For Werenski the bounce back wll be more in relation to getting Columbus on a winning path and for McAvoy it will coming back from a rough showing in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
THIRD DEFENSE PAIRING
QUINN HUGHES – BROCK FABER
TORONTO, CANADA – OCTOBER 14: Brock Faber #7 of the Minnesota Wild skates with the puck against the Toronto Maple Leafs during the third period in an NHL game at Scotiabank Arena on October 14, 2023 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Maple Leafs defeated the Wild 7-4. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images)
Hughes will be the power play quarterback of this bunch and will be complemented by the young Faber. I’m counting on Faber to continue to look good from the tremendous rookie season he had in Minnesota and I’m counting on Hughes to be, well, Quinn Hughes.
NOTABLES LEFT OFF: JACOB TROUBA, SETH JONES, LUKE HUGHES, JOHN CARLSON
GOALTENDERS
JAKE OETTINGER – CONNOR HELLEBUYCK – JEREMY SWAYMAN
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MAY 27: Jake Oettinger #29 of the Dallas Stars covers the puck as he defends the net against the Vegas Golden Knights in the second period of Game Five of the Western Conference Final of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at T-Mobile Arena on May 27, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Stars defeated the Golden Knights 4-2. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
The U.S. has tremendous depth at goaltending and it can’t be rivaled in this tournament. This is the position where they will really need to show their capabilities and use it to their advantage against the other goaltending in the series.
