Here's which Bruins will (and will not) be playing in 4 Nations Face-Off
The four rosters for February's 4 Nations Face-Off have now been finalized (barring injury), with the United States, Canada, Sweden and Finland all revealing their teams on Wednesday.
The Boston Bruins will be represented on three of the four rosters, with Charlie McAvoy and Jeremy Swayman making Team USA, Brad Marchand going for Canada, and Elias Lindholm getting picked for Sweden.
McAvoy and Marchand had already been announced by their respective countries over the summer as "First Six" selections. Lindholm and Swayman found out they had been chosen on Wednesday.
A couple Bruins were notable absences Wednesday, as Hampus Lindholm did not make Team Sweden and Joonas Korpisalo got left off Finland's roster.
Hampus Lindholm was off to a good start this season, but unfortunately suffered a knee injury on Nov. 12 that significantly hurt his chances of making the team, especially since he is still expected to miss another several weeks. Sweden's defense corps is also loaded, so Lindholm probably wasn't a lock even if he had remained healthy.
Jonas Brodin, who is also banged up right now, is probably the player Lindholm would have needed to bump out. Even then, there's no guarantee he would have been next up over Detroit Red Wings youngster Simon Edvinsson, whom some were already labeling a "snub" on Wednesday.
Korpisalo is off to a strong start in his first season as a Bruin, posting a 6-2-1 record with a .909 save percentage while backing up Swayman. But that wasn't enough to elevate him over three goalies who are playing more games and also putting up solid numbers – Nashville's Juuse Saros (6-10-5, .911), Vancouver's Kevin Lankinen (12-3-3, .906) and Buffalo's Ukko-Pekka Lukkonen (8-6-2, .906).
Speaking of Swayman, it was fair to wonder if his slow start (7-9-2, .892) was going to cost him a spot on Team USA, but he ultimately made the cut as the third goalie behind Connor Hellebuyck and Jake Oettinger. Seattle's Joey Daccord (11-6-1, .912) and Toronto tandem-mates Anthony Stolarz (8-4-2, .924) and Joseph Woll (6-2-0, .923) were strong contenders, with Daccord also potentially under consideration for Canada since he has dual eligibility and has not yet committed to either country internationally.
On Team Canada, a number of mock lineups have put Marchand on an all-Nova Scotia line with Sidney Crosby and Nathan MacKinnon, which would certainly be a fun trio to watch. Marchand, Crosby and Patrice Bergeron formed Canada's top line at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey and led the team to gold.
The Bruins' biggest star of all, David Pastrnak, will not be playing in the tournament because the NHL chose to limit it to four teams and leave out the Czech Republic, something Pastrnak expressed his displeasure with earlier this year. Linemate Pavel Zacha would have been a lock for the Czech team as well.
Nikita Zadorov would have had a good shot at making a Russian team, but the NHL did not include Russia due to the country's ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Russia also remains banned from all IIHF events at least through the end of the 2024-25 season. It is unclear if Russia will be allowed to participate in the 2026 Winter Olympics.
The 4 Nations Face-Off will be the first international tournament to feature NHL players since the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. The NHL blocked players from participating in the last two Olympics, but will return to the 2026 Games in Milano-Cortina, Italy. The league has also committed to the 2030 Olympics in the French Alps, and will presumably want to participate in the 2034 Olympics on American soil in Salt Lake City, Utah.
The 4 Nations Face-Off begins on Feb. 12 at the Bell Centre in Montreal before shifting to Boston's TD Garden for the final two round-robin games on Feb. 17 and the championship game on Feb. 20. The games on Feb. 17 will be USA vs. Sweden and Canada vs. Finland. The two teams with the best record in the round-robin stage will advance to the final.
