A new generation of hockey fans were treated to an international performance that will imprint on them for the rest of their lives. Spectacular showing from everyone involved as the United States beat Canada 3-1.

It’s a Team Game – Three fights nine seconds in. We had both Tkachuk brothers get involved first with Matthew taking on Brandon Hagel followed by Brady squaring up with Sam Bennett. Nine seconds of play later JT Miller took on Colton Parayko. The tone was set – Canada vs. USA was back, baby. Many players made their mark on this game in various ways, but Connor McDavid was the first to deliver with a burst of speed and a beautiful backhand roof job over the world’s best goaltender in Connor Hellebuyck. Jake Guentzel would answer with a goal that Jordan Binnington certainly would want back. The teams would continue to fight and Canada had built up a swell of momentum. Hellebuyck kept denying the Canadians, quick stop after quick stop, and all those saves paid off when Dylan Larkin scored yet another goal that I presume Binnington would want back. That would prove to be the difference as the United States were able to shore things up defensively at the end. A match for the ages, some of the best hockey I’ve ever seen played.

And now, without further adieu, I present to you all a better boxing card than Tyson vs. Paul:

Corsi King – Jake Guentzel (71.37 CF%) must be happy to go to an international tournament and play for one of the few coaches (Mike Sullivan) that understand how clutch he actually is. Of all the forwards he was one of the most impressive at driving scoring chances after entering the zone. On defence I think the Americans standout was Charlie McAvoy (65.17 per cent). He showed how much he can truly control a game with his presence on the backend. The fun part about how he executed tonight was he did it with brute force. Hitting everything he could with purpose and passion – a key factor this was so entertaining.

Brandon Hagel (60.42 per cent) showed great burst in the first game and incredible passion In this second one. He more than held his own in the fight to kick things off and followed it up by constantly being an effective winger and doing his job in the neutral zone. The Canadians did not ease Thomas Harley (57.12 per cent) into the lineup. He came in and saw three more minutes at 5v5 than other first timer Travis Sanheim (52.32 per cent) and was excellent.

Taken By Chance – Jaccob Slavin (44.29 SCF% || 25.01 HDCF%) is getting a lot of attention tonight for some great work, which is a bit of a mirage. He didn’t see a goal go against him all night long despite Hellebuyck bailing him out on a few occasions. Seven high danger chances at 5v5 as the Canadians top playmakers kept getting passes inside on him and his partner, Brock Faber (44.29 per cent || 25.01 per cent). He’s still one of the best defensive defencemen in today’s game, but I do not think his performance in this one game overshadowed Hellebuyck’s excellence.

How excellent was Thomas Harley (89.48 per cent || 100 per cent)? He only saw the scoring chances be 9-1 in his favour during his 5v5 minutes, with the high danger ratio being 8-0. It was a needed performance off that back end with Cale Makar out and the team relying heavily on Josh Morrisey (34.20 per cent || 45.94 per cent). Really every Canadian player showed up for this match-up, every skater was on the top of their game playing to their own strengths. The goaltender has to not let in multiple weak goals when you play like this.

xGF% – Zach Werenski (61.15 per cent) once again posts the best numbers on the Americans defence, but his ice time was lower than Noah Hanifin’s (37.23 per cent). I doubt the coaching staff for the Americans touch their lineup after going two for two and clinching a spot in the final game already, but I would suggest swapping Werenski and Hanifin. Werenski is a man on a tear this season and I wouldn’t hold him back. One last shout-out to two quality centre’s that play the game well on both sides of the puck, making it very difficult for the Canadian depth. Auston Matthews (68.31 per cent) and Jack Eichel (68.14 per cent) is one heck of a one-two punch.

One player I’ve got a niche appreciation for is Anthony CIrelli (80.74 per cent). Offence is not his first priority, and he does all the dirty work for head coach Cooper. His strong 5v5 play evident in this game again seeing just one scoring chance against in his 5v5 minutes. While Connor McDavid (57.93 per cent) showed up on the scoresheet Canada was really missing some contributions from the Cole Harbour boys, Sidney Crosby (75.43 per cent) and Nathan MacKinnon (64.44 per cent). I think that ends up being a bad thing for Finland on Monday.

In The Crease – I don’t need to split the goaltending into two sections because it was the number one difference in this game. Connor Hellebuyck (1.51 GSAX at 5v5) was his Vezina calibre, future Hall of Fame self while Jordan Binnington (-0.62 GSAX at 5v5) let in two goals off the rush, with no screen and no deflections. The first one wasn’t even an odd man rush. Binnington did show some great athleticism and clearly fought as hard as he could, but the worries about the Canadians goaltending ended up being right. Here’s hoping whoever starts on Monday shows up so we can get the re-match we all deserve. 

Daily Faceoff Live is on the road! From February 10th to 20th, we’re bringing you live shows every weekday straight from Four Nations, delivering exclusive coverage, insider analysis, and all the tournament action as it unfolds. Don’t miss a beat—subscribe to the Daily Faceoff YouTube channel and follow us on social for the latest updates. It’s international hockey, so expect intensity, excitement, and maybe even a little chaos. Stay locked in and catch us live from Four Nations!