Stock Up, Stock Down – NHL’s 4 Nations Face-Off smashes all expectations

Connor McDavid fired the final and decisive shot in the 4 Nations Face-Off, with Team Canada winning out over the United States in the championship game of the National Hockey League’s return to best-on-best play.

Assisted by Mitch Marner, the Edmonton Oilers star was left open in the slot in the winner-takes-all extra frame and sent the puck beyond Team USA netminder Connor Hellebuyck to conclude what had become an increasingly heated and politically-charged event.

Jon Cooper’s squad fought back from 2-1 down in the second period to take down their American counterparts in the gold-medal game, with more than 16 million viewers tuning in to watch the final across North America.

With that in mind, let’s dive into Stock Up, Stock Down – a weekly series in which Luke James unpacks key developments across the hockey world.

Stock Down – Florida Panthers & Boston Bruins

The NHL’s nine-year desertion of international best-on-best hockey was justified on the basis that injuries could (and had) upset franchise owners.

When John Tavares suffered a season-ending knee injury at the 2014 Winter Olympics, it left his team (the New York Islanders) furious that they would be forced to play the most important section of the season without their star forward. They were also on the hook to pay his multi-million-dollar salary, despite the fact that he was injured while wearing the red of Team Canada.

The Boston Bruins find themselves in a similar position of agony following the 4 Nations, with star defenceman Charlie McAvoy sidelined with a shoulder injury that left him hospitalised and uncertain to play again this season.

The Bruins, who sit fourth in the wildcard race, already face an uphill battle to make the playoffs. Without McAvoy, their odds of reaching the summit fall even further.

Matthew Tkachuk could also miss time after the 4 Nations, with the Florida Panthers star exiting the final midway through the second period.

4 Nations Face-Off: Matthew Tkachuk, Team USA (Image: NHL)

While the stakes are lower for the Panthers (they lead the Atlantic Division and are almost certain to make the playoffs), losing Tkachuk is a hammer blow.

Stock Up – Jordan Binnington

‘Netminder for Team Canada’ – it’s either the best or worst job title in the world and it depends exclusively on how the person between the pipes copes under pressure. And, despite months of criticism (including warranted jabs throughout the tournament), Jordan Binnington silenced his doubters and backstopped his nation to its most culturally-important win since the 1972 Summit Series.

When Team Canada announced its roster in December, the selection of Adin Hill, Samuel Montembeault, and Binnington sparked a national discussion about the decline of Canadian netminding.

Defenders of Binnington justified his inclusion for one reason – despite his flaws (namely, the frequency with which he allows soft goals), he stands tall in high-pressure moments, most notably during the St Louis Blues’ run to the Stanley Cup in 2019.

And that’s exactly what he did at the 4 Nations.

4 Nations Face-Off: Jordan Binnington, Canada (Image: NHL)

Binnington repeatedly robbed the United States in the final, cementing his reputation as a clutch performer with a handful of championship-saving stops in overtime.

‘And that’s what winners do’ – Jon Cooper on Jordan Binnington

“He made probably three or four all-world saves early in overtime to allow us to score the goal,” McDavid said of his netminder. “All credit to him. Hopefully, some of those haters will back off him, because, honestly, he played great.”

After rocky performances earlier in the tournament, Cooper faced pressure to bench Binnington for Hill. He never wavered – Binnington was always his guy.

“It wasn’t something where, if this game was won in regulation, we were gonna sit there and say, you know, Jordan Binnington saved the game,” Cooper said in the post-game press conference, “but when it came to overtime and we needed him most, to make the saves you supposed to, and then make a few that you’re not, he saved his best for last. And that’s what winners do, and there wasn’t a chance I was not gonna back the winner.”

Binnington is an imperfect netminder – but his career statistics in winner-takes-all showdowns say it all.

• Stanley Cup Playoffs (2019) – Round Two, Game Seven – 29/30 saves
• Stanley Cup Playoffs (2019) – Final, Game Seven – 32/33 saves
• 4 Nations Face-Off (2025) – Final – 31/33 saves

Clutch.

Stock Down – Elias Pettersson

In the midst of a difficult and tumultuous season with the Vancouver Canucks, Elias Pettersson believers hoped that he would use the 4 Nations as a relaunch opportunity – that the chance to play for Sweden in a best-on-best format would re-light his passion for puck.

It wasn’t to be – Petterson had three shots and zero points in three appearances, with his ice time limited below the ten-minute mark in Sweden’s dead-rubber win over the USA.

Bleak – even if injury of illness played a factor.

Stock Up – Hockey

There is no doubt that the sport of hockey is the biggest winner from the 4 Nations Face-Off. The return of best-on-best play delivered everything fans had dreamt of since Team North America won hearts and minds at the gimmicky World Cup of Hockey in 2016.

The NHL’s best players performed at the highest level, with Sidney Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon, and McDavid leading the way for Canada. In the United States, Brady and Matthew Tkachuk are now transcendent figures and will lift interest in the sport to new levels.

And, as a direct consequence of buy-in from the league’s superstars, the on-ice product was phenomenal and the best advert for hockey in a generation.

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