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    How Connor McDavid, Jordan Binnington lifted Canada to 4 Nations title over U.S.: Takeaways | USAEMALL.com

    Press RoomBy 10 Mins Read

    BOSTON — With 11:42 remaining in overtime, Connor McDavid winged a shot from the slot past Connor Hellebuyck to give Canada a 3-2 win over Team USA on Thursday in the 4 Nations Face-Off championship game at TD Garden.

    McDavid took a Mitch Marner pass out of the corner and snapped the puck over Hellebuyck’s glove.

    “Connor’s the best player in our game,” said Nathan MacKinnon, who was named tournament MVP. “For him to put it in like that in such an intense atmosphere and a hostile environment for Canadians was special. Hopefully, he can do that again next year (in the Olympics), too.”

    McDavid credited Marner for making the pass out of the corner. McDavid’s job was to stay open in the middle.

    “Your average hockey fan is not going to appreciate how impressive that is, to pick the puck up off the wall like that so calmly and make a great play,” McDavid said. “Had his head up, drawing two guys to him and dish it to the middle. It’s a great play. Fans might not appreciate how good that is.”

    Binnington a hero in Boston again

    While McDavid scored the winner, Jordan Binnington was Canada’s overtime hero. The starting goalie turned back six U.S. shots in OT, including two from point-blank range by Auston Matthews. Binnington also dove to glove a Brady Tkachuk shot.

    “You’ve got to give all the credit to Binner in overtime,” Canadian forward Brad Marchand said. “He made five or six unbelievable saves that completely changed the course of that game. Tonight, we won the game of inches. That’s the tough thing about these games when it’s a one-off. Single-game elimination, they’re tough to win. They’re a great group. But we were a little bit better tonight.”

    Canada’s goaltending was considered a weak point compared to the U.S. contingent. But Binnington, who won a Stanley Cup in Boston with the St. Louis Blues in 2019, was at his best at the biggest moment in overtime.

    “I haven’t seen it,” Binnington said when asked of his theft of Matthews. “It’s funny in those moments. I don’t even remember. That’s when you’re into it. I was just battling and trying to do my job. Found a way to get the job done. Obviously, there’s little moments like that that are more special when you win. I’ll definitely check it out.”

    ‘Johnny Hockey!’

    During the third period, the TD Garden crowd started a “Johnny Hockey!” chant twice in honor of Johnny Gaudreau. The Americans kept the late forward’s No. 13 jersey in their dressing room during the tournament. They handed out Gaudreau’s jersey to the most deserving player after each win.

    Matthews, the U.S. captain, gave Gaudreau’s uniform to Brady Tkachuk after the U.S.’s first win over Finland. Tkachuk presented it to Jake Guentzel after the Americans beat Canada at the Bell Centre.

    U.S. rides Slavin-Faber pair

    Brock Faber (28:50) and Jaccob Slavin (28:32) led the Americans in ice time. Neither is known for having the up-ice skill of Zach Werenski, the team’s most dynamic defenseman. But the Slavin-Faber duo served as a thorough shutdown pair by being positionally sound, keeping tight gaps, angling opponents away from dangerous ice and moving pucks rapidly.

    As proof of their defense-first worth, Faber had zero shots on net. Slavin had two. The coaching staff kept calling their numbers because of how well they checked.

    “Slavin and Faber were tremendous the whole tournament,” U.S. coach Mike Sullivan said. “When we put them together, we hoped they would be a defense pair that would be hard to play against. And they were. I thought they do yeoman’s work. They do the thankless job. They defend against the best players. Their contributions don’t always show up on the highlight reel, but it just adds up to winning. You need those types of players. They’re glue guys. They’re the type of guys that help teams win. That’s why they’re here.

    “I thought they both had tremendous tournaments. Jaccob Slavin might be one of the best defending defensemen in the league, bar none. His mobility, his size, his reach. He defends the rush. He’s great at the net front. Brock Faber, in my mind, is an emerging star.”

    Canadians exploit Adam Fox

    Team USA tried to shelter Adam Fox on the No. 3 pair with Noah Hanifin. But the Canadians still targeted the right-shot defenseman in the second period leading up to the tying goal.

    Fox tried to exit the zone with a long-distance pass up the ice. Sam Bennett intercepted the pass and started the counterattack.

    Fox tried to gap up. But he took a long twirl, which allowed Bennett and Marner to gain the offensive zone with speed. Once Marner cut into the middle with the puck, Fox went with the forward. This allowed Marner to find a seam for Bennett on the left flank into the space Fox vacated. Bennett beat Hellebuyck, making the game 2-2. Through regulation, Bennett led all players with six shots on net.

    Fox’s Olympic spot is not guaranteed given his lack of pace.

    One Tkachuk up, the other down

    Brady Tkachuk was a monster this tournament. The Ottawa Senators captain scored in the first period. In the second period, his forechecking presence below the goal line opened space for Jake Sanderson to score from between the dots. Brady Tkachuk and Matthews were the Americans’ two best forwards in the title game.

    Matthew Tkachuk, however, was a shadow of his usual menacing self. He did not take a single shift in the third period or overtime. Tkachuk was on the bench cheering on his teammates.

    In the second, he was limited to six shifts. One shift lasted just one second. He appeared to have little of his skating pop. He did not play against Sweden because of an undisclosed injury.

    “Matthew Tkachuk has an impact on our team in such a way that even if he wasn’t 100 percent and we weren’t able to utilize him for a lot of the game, his presence on the bench and in the locker room means so much to this group,” Sullivan said. “He’s all heart. He’s a heart-and-soul guy. So is his brother.”

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    Reinhart initiates opening goal

    In the first period, Werenski tried to go D-to-D deep in the defensive zone to Sanderson. Sam Reinhart made Werenski pay.

    Reinhart anticipated the pass, picked off the puck below the goal line and went low to high to Thomas Harley at the left point. Once Harley handed the puck off to Nathan MacKinnon, Reinhart stayed in front of the net to screen Hellebuyck.

    So when MacKinnon sifted a shot on net from above the tops of the circles, Reinhart’s screen helped limit Hellebuyck’s vision. The U.S. goalie did not appear to see MacKinnon’s shot until it was past him.

    Switching centers produces U.S. goal

    Late in the first period, the Americans flipped Matthews and Jack Eichel. The move paid off. On their second shift, Matthews and new wings Brady Tkachuk and Matthew Tkachuk produced the tying goal.

    Matthews started the play by picking off Devon Toews’ slow-moving pass to Cale Makar below the goal line. Matthews whirled around the net and threw the puck out front. Brady Tkachuk crashed the net and jammed the puck past Binnington.

    Even after Matthew Tkachuk left the game, Matthews and Brady Tkachuk were a force together.

    ‘Celebration of hockey’

    Even before the puck dropped on Thursday’s final, the Americans and Canadians acknowledged the 4 Nations Face-Off had touched the sport in a way few events have.

    “This tournament has had a huge impact on hockey, certainly in the United States. Without a question in North America. But maybe the world,” Sullivan said. “These best-on-best tournaments bring out the best of the best. The commitment, the investment that all of these teams have displayed every night, in my mind, has been an unbelievable celebration of hockey.

    “It’s hard not to get excited about what we’re witnessing. I would envision tonight would be the pinnacle of that with Team USA and Canada competing for the championships.”

    What has especially caught Sullivan’s attention is how the tournament has instantly advanced the sport’s progression. It is not just that some of the world’s best hockey players have participated. They are also among the most competitive and imaginative athletes on the planet.

    “These are the savants that, when they bring their creativity and brilliance to what they do out there, that’s how the game evolves,” Sullivan said. “That’s what we’re witnessing firsthand. I feel like I have the best seat in the house because I’m up close to it right behind the bench.”

    The tournament has also expanded the NHL’s reach. It might encourage participants and viewers new to the sport to give hockey more attention.

    “People outside the arena that normally don’t discuss our sport are speaking about it at the water cooler,” Canada coach Jon Cooper said. “I’m sure there’s going to be watch parties, not only in our country but the United States, as well. People in Europe are going to tune into this game. And they should. Because it’s richly deserved. It’s richly deserved because you’re watching two teams with a ton of passion to play this sport.

    “And that’s what this sport is. That’s why people say the Stanley Cup’s the hardest trophy to win. Because it’s two months of that. That’s why, when you’re fortunate enough to lift that Stanley Cup, you know how hard it was to get there.”

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    McAvoy’s inspirational return

    Charlie McAvoy was released from Massachusetts General Hospital on Thursday. The Team USA defenseman had been hospitalized since Monday because of an infection in his right shoulder.

    McAvoy read the starting lineup for the Americans. The defenseman was wearing a sling. Several of his teammates gave McAvoy a standing ovation. Brady Tkachuk hugged McAvoy after he finished reading the lineup.

    The Boston Bruins defenseman was injured on Feb. 13 in the U.S.-Finland game. McAvoy suffered a significant injury to the AC joint in his right shoulder. He has been ruled out from his club team’s game on Saturday against the Anaheim Ducks. The Bruins do not expect McAvoy to play next week, either.

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    Required reading

    (Photo: Brian Babineau / Getty Images)


    https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6150529/2025/02/20/connor-mcdavid-4-nations-canada-usa/

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