In around a month’s time, Hockey Canada will announce its complete roster for the 4 Nations Face Off. The inaugural tournament featuring teams of NHL players representing Canada, Finland, Sweden and the United States is set to take place Feb. 12-20, 2025, at TD Garden in Boston and the Bell Centre in Montreal.
Six players have already been announced as being part of Team Canada: defenceman Cale Makar, along with forwards Sidney Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon, Brad Marchand, Brayden Point and Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid. That leaves 17 roster spots to be filled, including eight at forward, six on the blue line, and three between the pipes.
Related: NHL Announces 4 Nations Face-Off Tournament Details
There has been plenty of speculation in Edmonton about how many of McDavid’s NHL teammates could join him on the Canadian roster. Now the experts are starting to weigh in, and their projections will be music to Oilers fans’ ears.
TSN Director of Scouting Craig Button and TSN Hockey analyst Mike Johnson have just revealed their consensus Team Canada lineup with line combinations and defensive pairings. The TSN duo’s 23-man roster includes three Oilers players, with a fourth on the bubble.
Connor McDavid
The only question about McDavid relating to Team Canada is not whether the Richmond Hill product will be on the roster, but who his linemates will be.
To no surprise, the TSN experts have the No. 1 player in the world centering Canada’s No. 1 line. While Button suggested Sam Reinhart to play right wing alongside McDavid, they settled on Toronto Maple Leafs star Mitch Marner.
BUILDING TEAM CANADA PIECE-BY-PIECE – With a month until the 4 Nations Face-Off teams are officially named, it’s a prime moment for @CraigJButton & @mike_p_johnson to look at who should make Team Canada 🇨🇦 at this time: https://t.co/Iycr5qAGnt
— TSN Hockey (@TSNHockey) October 29, 2024
Johnson noted how Marner skated with McDavid during the summer, and the two talked about how much they liked playing with each other.
“I think Connor McDavid turning into a bit more of a goal scorer in this kind of a tournament would be nice,” Johnson said. “Mitch Marner (is) a facilitator, and Marner may be a little bit better of a skater than Sam Reinhart.”
Zach Hyman
On the left side of Canada’s top line, Button and Johnson are going with someone that McDavid knows extremely well: Oilers winger Zach Hyman.
This season has been a nightmare so far for Hyman, who has nary a goal and only one assist through Edmonton’s first 10 games, but his performance over the longer term speaks for itself: Since leaving the Maple Leafs to sign with the Oilers as a free agent in 2021, he has totalled 117 regular season goals and scored 30 more times in the playoffs.
“Zach Hyman, who may not be off to the greatest start, still has shown and demonstrated a clear ability to play with McDavid,” Button says. “So I’m not worried about a slow start, I’m worried about what the team will look like when they don the jersey and start to play the games, and I think Hyman is a really good fit.”
Johnson also points out that Hyman has familiarity with Marner from their time playing together on the Leafs, and in a short tournament where the teams will have limited prep time, any such pre-existing chemistry will be very important.
Evan Bouchard
On the backend, the TSN duo have Oilers rearguard Evan Bouchard playing the right side on Canada’s second defensive pairing opposite Josh Morrissey of the Winnipeg Jets.
While Johnson suggests that Noah Dobson be paired with Morrissey, Button makes a convincing case for Bouchard by pointing out how the 25-year-old offensive dynamo has blossomed in Edmonton playing alongside steady veteran Mattias Ekholm.
BUILDING TEAM CANADA PIECE-BY-PIECE – After selecting the 13 forwards on Tuesday, @CraigJButton & @mike_p_johnson now shift the focus to the blueline and in goal for Team Canada 🇨🇦: https://t.co/bMTt2Pg6Fr
— TSN Hockey (@TSNHockey) October 30, 2024
“Just like Ekholm really supported Evan Bouchard in Edmonton, I think Morrissey can do exactly the same thing for Evan Bouchard,” Button says. “We talk about moving the puck and getting the puck up the ice, and certainly Makar is the first-unit powerplay guy on the point, and I think Bouchard is the second guy.”
“As good as Noah Dobson (is), I think Evan Bouchard fits into that spot. I don’t want Evan Bouchard playing lower in the lineup, I want him in that spot, because if he’s not playing in my top four, I’m not so sure he’s on my team,” Button adds. “I don’t think Noah Dobson is ready for top four minutes at this level of competition, I think Evan Bouchard is.”
Stuart Skinner
Johnson and Button agree on Canada’s top two goalies, Jordan Binnington and Adin Hill. For the third netminder, Johnson leans towards Edmonton’s Stuart Skinner, but concedes to Button’s pick of Sam Montembeault from the Montreal Canadiens.
Button says that the No. 3 netminder isn’t likely to play, so the selection is more about who Hockey Canada wants to gain the experience that comes from being with a group of great players at an elite international tournament.
Johnson adds that he could very well change his goaltender picks before the roster is announced. Skinner is certainly in the mix, and a strong month of November just might earn him a spot on Team Canada. The final roster will be announced by Hockey Canada between Nov. 29 and Dec. 2.
