<p>The 2024-25 hockey calendar will include the NHL dipping its toes back into international waters as a warmup for 2026 Olympic participation. The 4 Nations Face-Off will take place Feb. 12-20, 2025, with Canada, the United States, Sweden and Finland battling in a round-robin format before the top two teams meet in a one-game final.</p>



<p>On June 28, the start date for the 2024 NHL Draft, the NHL will unveil the first six players for each nation competing in the 4 Nations Face-Off.</p>



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<p>Earlier this season, Steven Ellis and I, along with some guest prognosticators, predicted full rosters for the tournament. Click the hyperlinks to see our picks for <a href="https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/4-nations-face-off-2025-early-team-canada-roster-projections/">Canada</a>, <a href="https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/4-nations-face-off-2025-early-team-usa-roster-projections/">USA</a>, <a href="https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/4-nations-face-off-2025-early-team-sweden-roster-projections/">Sweden</a> and <a href="https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/4-nations-face-off-2025-early-team-finland-roster-projections/">Finland</a>.</p>



<p>But naming the first six is a different exercise. It’s not about simply predicting the best six players for each team. The NHL has decided to tease with the partial roster reveal for a reason. There’s a clear PR element in play when promoting the event so far in advance. So I’ve predicted my “first six” for each team with that philosophy in mind. Rather than “Who are our six best players?” It’s “Who are our six locks that work best for the announcement?”</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="198"></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-canada">CANADA</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/sidney-crosby/1216">Sidney Crosby</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/nathan-mackinnon/2130">Nathan MacKinnon</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/cale-makar/2788">Cale Makar</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/connor-mcdavid/2471">Connor McDavid</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/brayden-point/2456">Brayden Point</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/steven-stamkos/1392">Steven Stamkos</a></p>



<p>Picking McDavid, MacKinnon and Makar was easy. You could make a case for them as the current three best players on the planet. They are also three of the game’s biggest global stars. They’re automatics. So is Crosby. He’s a shoo-in to wear the captain’s C, and naming him will finally allow us to visualize him playing with (a) fellow generational talent McDavid and (b) great friend MacKinnon. Point is the ultimate safe pick; he’s a versatile center who makes this team in almost any scenario. Stamkos is more of a PR pick here; better players than the version of him that’ll be 35 next February will end up on this team, from <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/zach-hyman/2468">Zach Hyman</a> to <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/mitchell-marner/2475">Mitch Marner</a>, but Stamkos is one of the game’s senior ambassadors. Since I still do fully expect him on the team, he’s a logical pick for the initial reveal. Note that I didn’t include a goaltender. Given how shaky Canada’s crease scenario is, it would make little sense to name a netminder this early and create expectations that he would be the No. 1. <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/adin-hill/2906">Adin Hill</a>? <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/stuart-skinner/4741">Stuart Skinner</a>? <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/jordan-binnington/1984">Jordan Binnington</a>? It’s anyone’s guess at this point.</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="199"></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-usa">USA</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/connor-hellebuyck/2465">Connor Hellebuyck</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/jack-hughes-30419/30419">Jack Hughes</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/quinn-hughes/4794">Quinn Hughes</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/auston-matthews/2433">Auston Matthews</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/brady-tkachuk/4790">Brady Tkachuk</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/matthew-tkachuk/2635">Matthew Tkachuk</a></p>



<p>There’s fun marketability having two of the three NHL Hughes brothers and both Tkachuk brothers be part of the initial announcement, and they all happen to be elite players anyway. Matthews is the biggest lock as the team’s marquee superstar. I wavered slightly on the Hellebuyck pick, because he has stiff competition in <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/jeremy-swayman/28098">Jeremy Swayman</a>, <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/thatcher-demko/2722">Thatcher Demko</a> and <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/jake-oettinger/2813">Jake Oettinger</a>. I had <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/adam-fox/27251">Adam Fox</a> originally but switched the pick to Hellebuyck, as it would feel almost disrespectful if the U.S. didn’t name him one day after he receives the Vezina Trophy on June 27 at the NHL Awards.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-sweden">SWEDEN</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/filip-forsberg/2064">Filip Forsberg</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/victor-hedman/1369">Victor Hedman</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/erik-karlsson/1087">Erik Karlsson</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/william-nylander/2375">William Nylander</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/elias-pettersson/2801">Elias Pettersson</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/linus-ullmark/2534">Linus Ullmark</a></p>



<p>Forsberg, Pettersson and Nylander are obvious merit-based picks as the three Swedish forwards playing at the highest level right now. Karlsson and Hedman won’t necessarily be the best blueliners on this team anymore, but it’s a sign of respect for the future Hall of Famers to give them the initial nods over players like <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/gustav-forsling/2431">Gustav Forsling</a> and <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/rasmus-dahlin/4786">Rasmus Dahlin</a>. While <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/jacob-markstrom/594">Jacob Markstrom</a> is a threat, Ullmark arguably has the inside track to start in goal.</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="187"></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-finland">FINLAND</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/sebastian-aho/2677">Sebastian Aho</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/aleksander-barkov/2132">Aleksander Barkov</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/miro-heiskanen/2803">Miro Heiskanen</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/roope-hintz/2863">Roope Hintz</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/mikko-rantanen/2477">Mikko Rantanen</a><br><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/juuse-saros/2557">Juuse Saros</a></p>



<p>Naming the Finns’ early selections was the simplest task of all. These six players stick out as their obvious best players. Aho, Barkov, Hintz and Rantanen are all-world talents, Heiskanen will be one of the best defensemen in the whole tournament, and Saros is pretty clearly Finland’s starter right now. It would be a mild upset if any one of these players wasn’t named to the initial six.</p>



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<p>Hey, hockey heads! Get ready for&nbsp;<a href="https://games.dailyfaceoff.com/games/playoff-parlay-challenge" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Daily Faceoff Playoff Parlay Challenge</a>! Each game day, answer four playoff prediction questions like who will win the first game, will points be over or under or what will be the highest-scoring period? Daily winners snag gift cards, while each round’s champs pocket cash! Play now at&nbsp;<a href="http://games.dailyfaceoff.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">games.dailyfaceoff.com</a>&nbsp;and prove your puck prowess! It’s fast, it’s fun, and it’s all about hockey! Let’s go!</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="145"></div>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-recently-by-matt-larkin">Recently by Matt Larkin</h2>



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