USA vs. Canada hockey: Who will be the American stars in the 4 Nations Face-Off championship game?

With a victory over Canada on Thursday night, Team USA would take home the trophy in the face of the 4 nations and be mented as the team to overcome the 2026 Olympic Games. The North -Americans already have a victory About his rivals in the north, but two in a row will be a task.

In order for the North -Americans to assassinate the greatest hockey power twice in so many games, a good handful of key players will have to be at their best. Canada is a team full of elite talent and national pride. Sidney Crosby has been in this endless position sometimes throughout her career, and players like Nathan Mackinnon and Connor McDavid are not exactly weird for success.

Given this, Team usa will need a better performance than what he achieved at Saturday’s victory 3-1. This begins with Captain Auston Matthews, who has not yet marked as he fought against an annoying injury. Matthews, a 69 goals scorer in the 2023-24 season, has the opportunity to be in charge of the game offensively.

At the other end of the ice, it helps to have the best goalkeeper in the world, which is exactly what Team usa uses to Connor Hellebuyck. He was stellar in the last game of the North -Americans against Canada and will probably have to raise his game even more, as the Canadians throw everything in the championship game.

Matthews and Hellebuyck will play great roles to determine the result of the 4 nations face, but they are not alone in this regard. Then show the most important players for the US who will enter the Thursday night match with Canada.

Auston Matthews | C

As has been the case of much of the Nhl Season, Matthews has been fighting an injury. Matthews has registered only one point in the face of the four nations, but is able to explode a great game at any time, and there would be no better time than on Thursday night.

From the beginning of the 2023-24 season, no one has scored more goals than Matthews (89), and this elite touch has made it an extremely valuable weapon. Its timely launch and accuracy allow Matthews to mark from anywhere in the offensive area, and this should be useful for trying the Canadian goalkeeper Jordan Binnington, who has seemed trembling at various times throughout the tournament.

One of the largest keys in the United States against Canada is the ability to prevent the great cannons of the Canadians from reaching a steam leader through the neutral area. A good ancestor can stop these plays before they even begin to hinder the contrary proponents to make clean passes on the outputs of the area. Enter Matthew Tkachuk.

Tkachuk, a type of heart and soul player in Florida Panthers and Team USA, is a previous tenacious one. It is like a dog in a bone when he hunted shit in the offensive area and his physicality can force defenders to get rid of the second shit before they are ready, which can lead to wrong steps and changes. Once Tkachuk recovers the North -Americans, he is able to reach the net and also set goals on the board.

Why not just keep riding the hot hand? Larkin has been one of the most notable Americans offensively in this tournament and on Saturday he scored the game winner against Canada on Saturday.

He used to play a big minutes on the top of the programming for Detroit’s red wings, Larkin has reduced to playing a minor role in a Loaded Team list. This has not bothered a bit. In fact, Larkin thrived in better apparatus as a six -year center. Larkin’s elite and play ability has been on the full screen, as he has created dangerous score possibilities in each of his team’s first three games. Having Larkin below the program also allows Team to use his lines forward and keep everyone cool for 60 minutes.

Slavin may not be a home name among NHL’s most casual fans, but they should know that his name was heading to Canada on Thursday. This is because Slavin is one of the best, if not the best, the NHL off defender. Especially with Charlie McAvoy outside the program, Slavin will be entrusted to limit the tastes of Mackinnon and McDavid.

At 6 feet-3 and 207 pounds, Slavin skates very well for someone in size, and is rarely out of position. When Speedsters like McDavid and Mackinnon enter the north -American area in full flight, Slavin is not intimidated. Its gap control is perfect and Slavin always manages to have the stick in the middle of a lane of passage or shooting. On Saturday, Slavin was a huge reason why the Canadians could not increase any sustained pressure in the third period.

Currently in the middle of a career season, Werenski is linked to Sidney Crosby for most points of 4 nations with five. Werenski has an advantage to turn a strong defense in offense and has facilitated a large number of offenses since the end of this tournament.

Like Slavin, Werenski is an exceptional skater who uses his vision to move the ice backwards. The difference is that Werenski offers more once the game reaches the offensive area. Werenski, whose 42 assists are second among the NHL defenders this season, is a spectacular facilitator. It also has an advantage to jump on the play and turn on the lamp. Its 17 goals are also second among all blue coatings.

Connor Hellebuyck | G

If you were ranking these key players in order of importance, Hellebuyck would be on top of the list. As much as the North -Americans play defensively, Canada will have their punctuation. When the Canadians break the containment, there is no US team that would prefer to have in the fold that Hellebuyck.

Hellebuyck, a Vezina trophy winner, Hellebuyck, is running to win her third this season. Its prominent play has taken place from the NHL season to the face of 4 nations. In his two beginnings, Hellebuyck stopped 45 of the 47 shots he faced, and some of them have been of the variety of great fan. With Canada looking for revenge in the championship game, Hellebuyck will probably have to make a few more savings to seal a victory for the United States