Canada vs. the United States was an utterly massive game this past Saturday, won by the Americans, 3-1. What could be a bigger? A rematch less than a week later – and it is for the tourney championship. Welcome to the biggest game in North American international ice hockey since the 2010 Winter Olympic Gold Medal Final in Vancouver.
The Time: 8 PM ET
The Broadcast: TV: ESPN, SportsNet, TVAS; Streaming: ESPN+, Disney+
The Location: The TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, United States
The Matchup: United States (2-0-0-1) vs. Canada (1-1-0-1) – Championship Game
The Pathway Here: For America, it was simple. They beat Finland 6-1, they beat Canada 3-1, and other results meant that they clinched this game after the 3-1 win over Canada. Sure, they lost 1-2 to Sweden but it was a consolation game.
For Canada, it was not as simple. Sweden came back from a 3-1 deficit to take them to overtime. Mitch Marner bailed them out after William Nylander mishandled a potentially killer pass from Jesper Bratt. The 4-3 win meant just 2 points in the standings instead of 3. On Saturday, they lost to the Americans 3-1 in regulation. Canada needed a win over Finland to secure playing on Thursday night without needing help. They did it 5-3, wherein they conceded those three goals in the final seven minutes and the nation could only exhale when Sidney Crosby put in an empty netter.
The Devil(s) Involved: The Big Deal, Jack Hughes, will continue to be a mainstay for the top-six forwards on the United States.
There could be a second. On Monday, Charlie McAvoy was ruled out due to an infection in his right shoulder. In case another defenseman cannot go tonight for whatever reason, Brett Pesce has been given the call to be a last-minute replacement.
The Rules: The usual rules still apply as if this was a New Jersey Devils gamethread. No swearing, no personal attacks or beefs, no comments or links to illegal streams, and, as ever, play nice or you will not play at all. And given the nations involved, no beefs, screeds, whinges, etc. about politics either – this isn’t X or Reddit.
Enjoy the 4 Nations Face-Off Final!
