<p>Finally, speculation gives way to reality. All four entrants released their finalized 4 Nations Face-Off rosters on Wednesday, filling out the remainders of their teams after naming six players apiece in June.</p>



<p>How does each roster look? What did its GM get right and wrong?&nbsp;Here’s a breakdown of Finland’s 23-man roster for the first-ever 4 Nations Face-Off:</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Official Roster</h2>



<p><strong>FORWARDS (13)</strong></p>



<p>Sebastian Aho (Car)<br>Joel Armia (Mtl)<br>Aleksander Barkov (Fla)<br>Mikael Granlund (SJ)<br>Erik Haula (NJ)<br>Roope Hintz (Dal)<br>Kaapo Kakko (NYR)<br>Patrik Laine (Mtl)<br>Artturi Lehkonen (Col)<br>Anton Lundell (Fla)<br>Eetu Luostarinen (Fla)<br>Mikko Rantanen (Col)<br>Teuvo Teravainen (Chi)</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>DEFENSEMEN (7)</strong></h2>



<p>Jani Hakanpaa (Tor)<br>Miro Heiskanen (Dal)<br>Esa Lindell (Dal)<br>Olli Maatta (Uta)<br>Niko Mikkola (Fla)<br>Rasmus Ristolainen (Phi)<br>Juuso Valimaki (Uta)</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>GOALIES (3)</strong></h2>



<p>Kevin Lankinen (Van)<br>Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (Buf)<br>Juuse Saros (Nsh)</p>



<p></p>



<p>A total of 47 Finnish players have skated in the NHL this year, with 31 of them (three goalies) playing a minimum of 15 games –&nbsp;essentially, the full-timers. Compare that to 373 Canadians – of which 245 players have at least 15 games played – and you can see there weren’t many difficult roster decisions for the Finnish squad to make. It was even easier on defense, with just seven defenders breaking the 15-game barrier.</p><div class="injected-ad injected-video" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="0" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="184"></div>



<p>But if there’s anything we’ve learned from the Finns internationally over the past decade, they don’t need an abundance of star talent to succeed. Finland is typically tightly coached and strong defensively, something they’ll need to be to come away with gold.</p>



<p>For the most part, the actual roster construction feels like the status quo. All nine active NHLers from the ill-fated World Cup team in 2016 are back – but most are playing more significant roles this time around. Barkov is an elite NHL center and Aho is on pace for his third 80-point season in the past four seasons. Mikael Granlund is playing some excellent hockey on a bad<a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/teams/san-jose-sharks/line-combinations"> San Jose Sharks </a>team this year, while Patrik Laine scored in his season debut earlier this week. Look for 30-year-old Esa Lindell to be leaned on heavily on the point, too.</p><div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="1" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="142"></div>



<p>And that doesn’t include the big dogs that weren’t on the 2016 team, either. Mikko Rantanen is an elite NHL winger –&nbsp;the best this team has. His <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/teams/colorado-avalanche/line-combinations">Colorado Avalanche </a>teammate, Artturi Lehkonen, has been tremendous the past few years (when healthy). <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/teams/dallas-stars/line-combinations">Dallas Stars</a> teammates Roope Hintz and Miro Heiskanen have been so important to the Stars throughout their young careers, too. And when Juuse Saros is at his best, few goalies get as dialed in as he does.</p>



<p>On paper, this Finnish team looks like the weakest of the four – and reality in February might prove that. But if any team has the ability to shut down another, it’s the Finns – it’s in their nature to work together.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Biggest Reach</h2>



<p>Henri Jokiharju might be having a difficult season, but he’s at least healthy. <strong>Hakanpää</strong>, meanwhile, has played just two games for the <a href="http://theleafsnation.com">Toronto Maple Leafs </a>after recovering from arthroscopic knee surgery and is on injured reserve for the second time. When healthy, Hakanpää is a massive 6-foot-7 defenseman who loves to lay out anyone that comes near him. He’s a right-handed shot, and while he has next to no offensive ability, he at least handles his side of the ice well. But, still –&nbsp;can the Finns count on Hakanpää being ready to go?</p><div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="2" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="213"></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Biggest Omission</h2>



<p>Again, this isn’t far from the lineup you probably could have put together when the tournament was first announced back in February. Statistically, <strong>Jesperi Kotkaniemi </strong>was the top player left off. He has 13 points in 25 games, and his advanced analytics are decent. But with the center depth the Finns had, it would have meant moving Kotkaniemi to the wing – but at that point, you might as well take an actual pure winger. Matias Maccelli – who had 57 points last season – would have made sense in that case, even if he’s having an ugly campaign.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Burning Question</h2>



<p><em>Is there enough pure skill to challenge?</em></p>



<p>The Finns have their fair share of high-end talents like Barkov, Rantanen, and Aho. But what they’re missing is a Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, or Auston Matthews. In a tournament as loaded as this, any advantage helps – and there isn’t really a category that the Finns sit No. 1 in. Who’s the guy that’ll take control of a game when they need it most? Rantanen is the lone 100-point scorer on the team, so he’s an easy option. But for comparison, Canada has six players on pace to break the century mark. It almost feels like Finland’s best way of winning gold is shutting things down and winning games 2-1.</p><div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="3" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="217"></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Projected lines</h2>



<p>Artturi Lehkonen&nbsp;– Aleksander Barkov – Mikko Rantanen<br>Mikael Granlund – Sebastian Aho – Teuvo&nbsp;Teräväinen<br>Erik Haula – Roope Hintz – Patrik Laine<br>Joel Armia – Anton Lundell – Kaapo Kakko<br>Eetu Luostarinen</p>



<p>Esa Lindell – Miro Heiskanen<br>Juuso Valimaki – Rasmus Ristolainen<br>Niko Mikkola –&nbsp;Jani Hakanpaa<br>Olli Määttä</p>



<p>Juuse Saros<br>Kevin Lankinen<br>Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Nation Gear Black Friday Sale</h2>



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Mikael Granlund, Sebastian Aho, Team Finland