4 Nations Faceoff: Finland Taps Montreal, Team USA Galaxy Brain

The 4 Nations Faceoff, an NHL-run tournament involving four countries set to take place in mid-February, will include Canadiens players, including the two Finnish forwards currently in the lineup.

Finnished List

Patrik Laine has a long history of performing well for his country on the world stage, which was enough to convince the Finns that he deserved a roster spot despite the preseason injury that kept him out of action until Tuesday night. Seeing as there’s still two months until the tournament kicks off, Laine should have a healthy number of games under his belt once the festivities kick off.

Given he missed almost an entire calendar year, Laine will need those games to fine-tune a few different aspects of his play, including his timing and his endurance, among other things. The good news is that it only took Laine a handful of shifts before he scored a powerplay goal during his Canadiens debut, which suggests that despite the long layoff, his shot remains a very potent offensive weapon.

MUST READ: Welcome to Montreal, Patrik Laine

Laine will be joined by Joel Armia, which may feel like a slightly odd choice seeing as he’s only scored two goals and eight assists in 25 games this season, but we must remember that teams are restricted to picking NHL players, therefore the options for Team Finland were limited. Armia’s specialty involves winning puck battles, making it safe to assume he will play a defensive role when facing Team Canada, Team USA, or Team Sweden.

Team Finland’s roster for the 4 Nations Face-Off! 🇫🇮

Any surprising names left off the list?

(HT @PierreVLeBrun) pic.twitter.com/VAgOo3PgIb

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) December 4, 2024

It’s worth noting former Hab Jesperi Kotkaniemi was not invited to participate in the tournament, despite enjoying a decent start to the season, with three goals and 10 assists in 25 games.

Team USA Galaxy Brain

Team USA has a much deeper pool of players to pull from, including the country’s best goalscorer, Canadiens sniper Cole Caufield. They also have some very interesting young players, such as Tage Thompson, who can combine youthful exuberance and talent to provide momentum shifts when needed.

It would be foolish to leave one, let alone two of their best players off the roster.

And that’s exactly what they’re expected to do, preferring to add players such as Vincent Trochek and Chris Kreider to the team. For the record, Caufield has more points than both Trochek and Kreider combined, making it the epitome of a galaxy-brain decision. It’s a short tournament, where talent reigns supreme. Building an international roster as if you were preparing for the grind involved in an 82-game schedule makes little to no sense.

Projecting Team USA 🇺🇸 roster for #4Nations Face-Off: pic.twitter.com/j74KeZoAnw

— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) December 4, 2024

On the bright side, the tournament should offer Caufield an opportunity to rest midway through the season, and will probably serve as motivation for the 23-year-old forward. As it stands, he’s on pace for a 52-goal, 23-assist, 82-game prorated season. For what it’s worth, Trochek is on pace for a 42-point prorated season. In other words, Caufield is on pace to score 10 more goals than Trochek has points by the end of the season.

Nick Suzuki drives the play (as is tradition), and Cole Caufield finds the back of the net for the second time today.

5-3 now. #GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/yNcp4OHY3y

— Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont) December 1, 2024