The 4 Nations Face-Off is underway and the hockey strongholds from around the world are poised to prove who is the best of the best. Canadian pride is on the line and despite World Juniors let downs and roster construction mishaps (ahem&#8230; MacKenzie Weegar) they will always be the team to beat.
Finland and Sweden have proven on many stages that European dominance is an ever present threat to the birthplace of hockey and of course, we would be remiss not to acknowledge the powerhouse American roster with arguably the best line-up in the tournament. These are the four countries with a legitimate claim to the title of World’s Finest.
NHL Stats publishes a document with Opening-Day Rosters “By The Numbers.&#8221; It really puts the 4 Nations event into perspective when you delve into the data provided:
<a href="https://media.nhl.com/public/news/18302">“84 – Percentage of players whose nationality is either Canada, the United States, Sweden or Finland – the countries that will compete at the 4 Nations Face-Off in February (601 of 712)”</a>
It is a concise and convenient way to illustrate why those countries were chosen for the tournament. They are what make the National Hockey League an international showcase.
These are not, however, the only countries who bleed for the game. What about the forgotten nations that were left without a seat at the table? Using the 4 Nations criteria to select thirteen forwards, seven defensemen, and three goalies for each country we will consider how the tournament could have been expanded. We will also note a few Flames’ hopefuls along the way.
<hr />
It isn’t too hard to fact check that while 84% of the league is impressive the overall total could be made slightly larger by removing Finland’s 5.2% and replacing them with Russia’s 6.5%. The 4 Nations tournament is upholding Russia’s ban from international play due to the ongoing war with Ukraine. A legitimate and important condition placed on Russia by the <a href="https://www.espn.com/olympics/story/_/id/43690217/iihf-extends-ban-russia-belarus-2025-26-season">IIHF</a>.
There is an interesting question to consider when thinking about Russia’s influence on the game: Who would they have sent to the tournament had they been invited?
Being that 4 Nations Face-Off is an NHL sanctioned event and teams are solely made-up of NHL professionals it would have been a different look than the NHL/KHL mash-ups that Russia often builds for the Olympics, that is, when NHL players were still attending.
<h2>Team Russia</h2>
There were 46 players who listed Russia as their birth country on Opening-Day rosters this year. More than enough to make a team and notably exactly double the number that an NHL team can keep on their active roster.
Leadership
Alexander Ovechkin (C)
Nikita Kucherov (A)
Evgeni Malkin (A)
Team Canada decided to put some youth into their leadership group but these three are the legacy status players that Russia would want to put on the world stage.
Forwards
Artemi Panarin
Kirill Kaprizov
Pavel Buchnevich
Vladislav Namestikov
Kirill Marchenko
Andrei Svechnikov
Matvei Michkov
Evgenii Dadonov
Ivan Barbashev
Yakov Trenin
Defense
Mikhail Sergachev
Ivan Provorov
Dmitry Orlov
Vladislav Gavrikov
Alexander Romanov
Nikita Zadorov
Dmitry Kulikov
Goalies
Andrei Vasilevskiy
Sergei Bobrovsky
Igor Shesterkin
Honourable Mentions
Ilya Sorokin
Vladimir Tarasenko
Vasily Podkolzin
Valeri Nichuskin
Andrei Kuzmenko
Daniil Miromanov (CGY)
Unsurprisingly, Russia could field quite a formidable team. They wouldn’t have the same calibre of elite talent that the Canadians or Americans boast but their collection of goalies is among, if not, the best of all the nations participating in the Face-Off.
<hr />
<h2>Team Czechia</h2>
Leadership
Radko Gudas (C)
David Pastrnak (A)
Ondrej Palat (A)
Radko Gudas is new to his captaincy in Anaheim and would certainly bring the enthusiasm his country needs. Pastrnak and Palat both bring a wealth of experience and a winning mentality.
Forwards
Martin Necas
Tomas Hertl
Pavel Zacha
Filip Chytil
Jiri Kulich
Jakub Vrana
Radek Faksa
Tomas Nosek
Ivan Ivan
David Kampf
Jakob Lauko
Defense
Filip Hronek
Jan Rutta
David Jiricek
John Ludvig
Matyas Sapovaliv (AHL)
Stanislav Svozil (AHL)
Goalies
Luke Dostal
Karel Vejmelka
David Rittich
Honourable Mentions
Adam Klapka (CGY)
Czechia would be able to ice a full complement of forwards with NHL regulars but if any injuries should arise it would not be a surprise to see Flames prospect Adam Klapka make the national team. They are thinner on the blue line at the NHL level and as you can see we have called up two AHL defensemen to round out their roster.
There are 3 legitimate Czechian goalies and while they are not elite options each of those goalies possesses the tools to win games.
This is the international equivalent of a middle of the pack NHL team. They have talent, role-players, and good enough goalies but up against the cream of the crop it will be tough sledding.
<hr />
There are no other nations capable of building a full roster with NHL talent. However, there are enough nations leftover to create a composite European squad. Switzerland, Slovakia, Germany, Latvia, Denmark, Belarus, Norway, Austria, France, Netherlands, and Slovenia collectively make up 5.7% of the league. Which is actually a greater share than Russia currently holds.
The bonds that tie these nations together may be questionable but please enjoy the exercise:
<h2>Team Europe</h2>
Leadership
Anze Kopitar (C) (SVN)
Leon Draisaitl (A) (GER)
Roman Josi (A) (SUI)
This leadership group benefits from the multinational approach to the team. Team Europe actually has a comparable forward group to Czechia and with Leon Draisiatl they have a game-breaker.
Forwards
Tim Stutzle (GER)
JJ Peterka (GER)
Lukas Reichel (GER)
Nico Hischier (SUI)
Timo Meier (SUI)
Kevin Fiala (SUI)
Pius Suter (SUI)
Juraj Slafkovsky (SVK)
Martin Pospisil (SVK) (CGY)
Nikolaj Ehlers (DEN)
Marco Rossi (AT)
Defense
Moritz Seider (GER)
Jonas Siegenthaler (SUI)
Erik Cernak (SVK)
Martin Fehervary (SVK)
Simon Nemec (SVK)
Emil Lilleberg (NOR)
Goalies
Frederik Andersen (DEN)
Elvis Merzlikins (LV)
Arturs Silovs (LV)
Honourable Mentions
Ilya Solovyov (BEL) (CGY)
Yegor Sharangovich (BEL) (CGY)
Teddy Blueger (LV)
A few countries were eliminated from the final roster just by virtue of putting together the strongest team. Team Europe would not be a particularly dangerous contender but they would be a competitive opponent to almost any other nation invited.
If this year’s tournament is a first step toward returning to an ongoing World Cup type event it makes sense that the countries chosen were the ones who could easily create a roster. As the NHL looks to expand the event there are going to be issues with pulling from league talent only and <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/nhl-nhlpa-roll-out-long-term-international-calendar-with-2028-world-cup-of-hockey">I believe they have recognized that</a>. Even the Czechian team struggled to make a complete roster let alone a competitive one.
As far as international hockey goes these tournaments will always be compared to the Olympics. That will continue until another international competition is able to manufacture the same level of passion, pride and arrogance that is felt when winning an Olympic gold medal.
It is year one of this experiment and if the Canada vs. Sweden game proves anything it is that best on best hockey is a delight to watch.
<h1>This article is brought to you by Crystal Waters</h1>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-large wp-image-131942" src="https://publish.flamesnation.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2099/08/CW_logo_Horz_RGB_WhtBkg-1024x341.png" alt="" width="1024" height="341" srcset="https://publish.flamesnation.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2099/08/CW_logo_Horz_RGB_WhtBkg-1024x341.png 1024w, https://publish.flamesnation.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2099/08/CW_logo_Horz_RGB_WhtBkg-300x100.png 300w, https://publish.flamesnation.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2099/08/CW_logo_Horz_RGB_WhtBkg-768x256.png 768w, https://publish.flamesnation.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2099/08/CW_logo_Horz_RGB_WhtBkg-1536x512.png 1536w, https://publish.flamesnation.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2099/08/CW_logo_Horz_RGB_WhtBkg.png 1800w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Crystal Waters is your Crystal Clear Choice for Home Comfort Solutions, including all plumbing, heating, and cooling equipment repairs, maintenance, and installation. Founded in 2001, and completing over 30,000 projects, our qualified professionals are the guardians of your home’s mechanical heart.
Call Crystal Waters Plumbing and Heating today at 403-219-4100 for a complete mechanical system audit, and learn how we can partner with you to ensure your home is optimized for safety, health, and comfort. Or check them out at <a href="http://www.crystalclearcalgary.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.crystalclearcalgary.com/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1727918572019000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3vaooTqBXRsNchXvQ30iLG">www.crystalclearcalgary.com</a>

The 4 Nations Face-Off is underway and the hockey strongholds from around the world are poised to prove who is the best of the best. Canadian pride is on the line and despite World Juniors let downs and roster construction mishaps (ahem... MacKenzie Weegar) they will always be the team to beat.

Finland and Sweden have proven on many stages that European dominance is an ever present threat to the birthplace of hockey and of course, we would be remiss not to acknowledge the powerhouse American roster with arguably the best line-up in the tournament. These are the four countries with a legitimate claim to the title of World’s Finest.

NHL Stats publishes a document with Opening-Day Rosters “By The Numbers." It really puts the 4 Nations event into perspective when you delve into the data provided:

<a href="https://media.nhl.com/public/news/18302">“84 – Percentage of players whose nationality is either Canada, the United States, Sweden or Finland – the countries that will compete at the 4 Nations Face-Off in February (601 of 712)”</a>

It is a concise and convenient way to illustrate why those countries were chosen for the tournament. They are what make the National Hockey League an international showcase.

These are not, however, the only countries who bleed for the game. What about the forgotten nations that were left without a seat at the table? Using the 4 Nations criteria to select thirteen forwards, seven defensemen, and three goalies for each country we will consider how the tournament could have been expanded. We will also note a few Flames’ hopefuls along the way.

<hr />

It isn’t too hard to fact check that while 84% of the league is impressive the overall total could be made slightly larger by removing Finland’s 5.2% and replacing them with Russia’s 6.5%. The 4 Nations tournament is upholding Russia’s ban from international play due to the ongoing war with Ukraine. A legitimate and important condition placed on Russia by the <a href="https://www.espn.com/olympics/story/_/id/43690217/iihf-extends-ban-russia-belarus-2025-26-season">IIHF</a>.

There is an interesting question to consider when thinking about Russia’s influence on the game: Who would they have sent to the tournament had they been invited?

Being that 4 Nations Face-Off is an NHL sanctioned event and teams are solely made-up of NHL professionals it would have been a different look than the NHL/KHL mash-ups that Russia often builds for the Olympics, that is, when NHL players were still attending.
<h2>Team Russia</h2>
There were 46 players who listed Russia as their birth country on Opening-Day rosters this year. More than enough to make a team and notably exactly double the number that an NHL team can keep on their active roster.

Leadership

Alexander Ovechkin (C)

Nikita Kucherov (A)

Evgeni Malkin (A)

Team Canada decided to put some youth into their leadership group but these three are the legacy status players that Russia would want to put on the world stage.

Forwards

Artemi Panarin

Kirill Kaprizov

Pavel Buchnevich

Vladislav Namestikov

Kirill Marchenko

Andrei Svechnikov

Matvei Michkov

Evgenii Dadonov

Ivan Barbashev

Yakov Trenin

Defense

Mikhail Sergachev

Ivan Provorov

Dmitry Orlov

Vladislav Gavrikov

Alexander Romanov

Nikita Zadorov

Dmitry Kulikov

Goalies

Andrei Vasilevskiy

Sergei Bobrovsky

Igor Shesterkin

Honourable Mentions

Ilya Sorokin

Vladimir Tarasenko

Vasily Podkolzin

Valeri Nichuskin

Andrei Kuzmenko

Daniil Miromanov (CGY)

Unsurprisingly, Russia could field quite a formidable team. They wouldn’t have the same calibre of elite talent that the Canadians or Americans boast but their collection of goalies is among, if not, the best of all the nations participating in the Face-Off.

<hr />

<h2>Team Czechia</h2>
Leadership

Radko Gudas (C)

David Pastrnak (A)

Ondrej Palat (A)

Radko Gudas is new to his captaincy in Anaheim and would certainly bring the enthusiasm his country needs. Pastrnak and Palat both bring a wealth of experience and a winning mentality.

Forwards

Martin Necas

Tomas Hertl

Pavel Zacha

Filip Chytil

Jiri Kulich

Jakub Vrana

Radek Faksa

Tomas Nosek

Ivan Ivan

David Kampf

Jakob Lauko

Defense

Filip Hronek

Jan Rutta

David Jiricek

John Ludvig

Matyas Sapovaliv (AHL)

Stanislav Svozil (AHL)

Goalies

Luke Dostal

Karel Vejmelka

David Rittich

Honourable Mentions

Adam Klapka (CGY)

Czechia would be able to ice a full complement of forwards with NHL regulars but if any injuries should arise it would not be a surprise to see Flames prospect Adam Klapka make the national team. They are thinner on the blue line at the NHL level and as you can see we have called up two AHL defensemen to round out their roster.

There are 3 legitimate Czechian goalies and while they are not elite options each of those goalies possesses the tools to win games.

This is the international equivalent of a middle of the pack NHL team. They have talent, role-players, and good enough goalies but up against the cream of the crop it will be tough sledding.

<hr />

There are no other nations capable of building a full roster with NHL talent. However, there are enough nations leftover to create a composite European squad. Switzerland, Slovakia, Germany, Latvia, Denmark, Belarus, Norway, Austria, France, Netherlands, and Slovenia collectively make up 5.7% of the league. Which is actually a greater share than Russia currently holds.

The bonds that tie these nations together may be questionable but please enjoy the exercise:
<h2>Team Europe</h2>
Leadership

Anze Kopitar (C) (SVN)

Leon Draisaitl (A) (GER)

Roman Josi (A) (SUI)

This leadership group benefits from the multinational approach to the team. Team Europe actually has a comparable forward group to Czechia and with Leon Draisiatl they have a game-breaker.

Forwards

Tim Stutzle (GER)

JJ Peterka (GER)

Lukas Reichel (GER)

Nico Hischier (SUI)

Timo Meier (SUI)

Kevin Fiala (SUI)

Pius Suter (SUI)

Juraj Slafkovsky (SVK)

Martin Pospisil (SVK) (CGY)

Nikolaj Ehlers (DEN)

Marco Rossi (AT)

Defense

Moritz Seider (GER)

Jonas Siegenthaler (SUI)

Erik Cernak (SVK)

Martin Fehervary (SVK)

Simon Nemec (SVK)

Emil Lilleberg (NOR)

Goalies

Frederik Andersen (DEN)

Elvis Merzlikins (LV)

Arturs Silovs (LV)

Honourable Mentions

Ilya Solovyov (BEL) (CGY)

Yegor Sharangovich (BEL) (CGY)

Teddy Blueger (LV)

A few countries were eliminated from the final roster just by virtue of putting together the strongest team. Team Europe would not be a particularly dangerous contender but they would be a competitive opponent to almost any other nation invited.

If this year’s tournament is a first step toward returning to an ongoing World Cup type event it makes sense that the countries chosen were the ones who could easily create a roster. As the NHL looks to expand the event there are going to be issues with pulling from league talent only and <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/nhl-nhlpa-roll-out-long-term-international-calendar-with-2028-world-cup-of-hockey">I believe they have recognized that</a>. Even the Czechian team struggled to make a complete roster let alone a competitive one.

As far as international hockey goes these tournaments will always be compared to the Olympics. That will continue until another international competition is able to manufacture the same level of passion, pride and arrogance that is felt when winning an Olympic gold medal.

It is year one of this experiment and if the Canada vs. Sweden game proves anything it is that best on best hockey is a delight to watch.
<h1>This article is brought to you by Crystal Waters</h1>
<img class="aligncenter size-large wp-image-131942" src="https://publish.flamesnation.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2099/08/CW_logo_Horz_RGB_WhtBkg-1024x341.png" alt="" width="1024" height="341" />Crystal Waters is your Crystal Clear Choice for Home Comfort Solutions, including all plumbing, heating, and cooling equipment repairs, maintenance, and installation. Founded in 2001, and completing over 30,000 projects, our qualified professionals are the guardians of your home’s mechanical heart.

Call Crystal Waters Plumbing and Heating today at 403-219-4100 for a complete mechanical system audit, and learn how we can partner with you to ensure your home is optimized for safety, health, and comfort. Or check them out at <a href="http://www.crystalclearcalgary.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.crystalclearcalgary.com/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1727918572019000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3vaooTqBXRsNchXvQ30iLG">www.crystalclearcalgary.com</a>

The Forgotten Nations: who isn’t at the Face-Off?

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