Barkov FLA 4NF bug

Aleksander Barkov takes pride in wearing the 'C' as captain of the Florida Panthers. So, he appreciates the meaning of being able to also do it while representing his country.

Barkov was named captain for Team Finland for the 4 Nations Face-Off on Thursday.

"Of course, it's a huge honor," Barkov said. "I never really dreamed about that thing, but, like I said, it's a huge honor. I'm really thankful for that opportunity to be a captain of the national team and I can't wait to get going in the tournament."

The 4 Nations Face-Off is an international tournament featuring teams made up of only NHL players from Canada, Finland, Sweden and the United States. The teams will play each other once in a round-robin format starting on Feb. 12 at Bell Centre in Montreal. The final day of the round robin is Feb. 17 at TD Garden in Boston, with the two top teams advancing to the championship game on Feb. 20 in Boston.

It will be the first best-on-best tournament in hockey since the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, which Barkov played in when he was 21 years old. Finland opens the competition against the United States on Feb. 13 in Montreal (8 p.m. ET; ESPN+, ESPN, SN, TVAS).

"We're really excited," Barkov said. "I know we've been talking about this tournament for a long time and now it's here in a couple weeks. So, we're really excited about that, excited about the opportunity to play against the best players in the world and, at the same time, we're excited to be able to play with each other as a Team Finland. We know each other really well. It's a small country. I think everyone has at some point played with each other or been somewhere in the same room or same place with each other.

"So, we have a good group of guys and really everyone wants to win."

Barkov became the first Finnish captain to hoist the Stanley Cup in June after the Panthers defeated the Edmonton Oilers in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final. The 29-year-old center tied for the Panthers lead in points in the playoffs with 22 (eight goals, 14 assists) in 24 games.

Barkov, who has been the Panthers captain since Sept. 17, 2018, will be joined on Finland's leadership group by assistant captains Sebastian Aho and Mikko Rantanen of the Carolina Hurricanes, and Mikael Granlund of the San Jose Sharks.

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"It's a great group," Barkov said. "Those guys are leaders on their own teams in the NHL. Obviously, Granlund has been captain of Team Finland and the national teams (2018 and 2024 IIHF World Championship) before and led them to world championships. So, those guys are natural leaders. They lead their own teams, and they lead by example. They lead by their work ethic, and it will be fun to see what type of guys they are in the room as well."

Said Granlud: "It's an honor, and I'm obviously really, really excited about the tournament. I know [Barkov] really good. First of all, he's such a good player. I think he's getting the recognition around the League, how good he actually is. Obviously, winning the Stanley Cup last year, but what he's been doing all over the ice for the last... whatever, 10 years or something, it's really impressive."

Rantanen won silver at the 2016 World Championship and gold at the 2016 World Junior Championship

"It's obviously a big honor, first of all being on the team," Rantanen said. "Growing up, I remember watching the Olympics and all the great Finnish players who played back then, just dreaming one day that maybe you will be a part of it. And now to be one of the leaders of the team, obviously, is a really big honor, and hopefully I can do the job there."

Barkov is one of four Panthers players on Team Finland; he will be joined by forwards Anton Lundell, Eetu Luostarinen and defenseman Niko Mikkola. Panthers assistant coach Tuomo Ruutu also is an assistant for Finland.

Florida will have eight players competing in the tournament with forward Matthew Tkachuk representing the United States, forwards Sam Reinhart and Sam Bennett playing for Canada and defenseman Gustav Forsling playing for Sweden. Barkov doesn't expect any of his Panthers teammates to let up on each other physically when the puck drops.

"'Chuckie', for sure, he's not going to lay off from any hits," Barkov said of Tkachuk. "I've seen him from too close for a long time. That's why he's one of the best players in the world. Obviously, 'Benny' is a physical player, very skilled, physical player, so we have to be aware of him, of course. And I play with 'Reino' a lot of minutes the last couple of years and know what kind of player he is. And, obviously, Gustav is an amazing player, too, really good defensively. So, those guys you have to be aware of.

"So, I don't know. We'll see how physical they will get, but if that's their game style or playing style in that tournament, we will have to be aware of that. But at the same time, we have to concentrate on our own systems and our own playing style."

A two-time winner of the Selke Trophy (2020-21, 2023-24) as best defensive forward in the NHL, Barkov is the Panthers' all-time leader in games (779), goals (278), assists (475) and points (753). In addition to his experience at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, where Finland went 0-3-0, Barkov won a bronze medal at the 2014 Sochi Olympics when he was 18 and silver at the 2016 World Championship.

He'll lean on those experiences as Finland's captain at the 4 Nations Face-Off.

"Sochi was my first men's national team tournament, and I'll remember it forever," Barkov said. "It's the Olympics. The Olympics, every single athlete wants to be a part of. Whether it's Winter or Summer, it doesn't matter. You want to be a part of it. You're watching it on TV and then you get a chance to represent your country, there is an amazing opportunity. I was there for, unfortunately, only a couple games, but I remember every single moment there, and, hopefully, we get to go again.

"Same thing with the World Cup. It was a great tournament. I know it didn't go well for Team Finland. We didn't win any games there, but it was a great experience for sure playing against the best players in the world and it was a lot of fun playing against them. But I think we have a great team now, a great Team Finland, so we're ready to challenge and we want to win. That's our goal."

It's been quite the year for Barkov. In addition to winning the Stanley Cup and being named captain of Team Finland, he was named the Athlete of the Year in Finland on Jan. 17, becoming the first hockey player to win that award.

"This means the world to me," Barkov told NHL.com after winning the award. "It's the Athlete of the Year in Finland, the country where I was born and raised. I grew up watching the national teams play, cheering for them. To get that honor is huge for me. I am really happy and really thankful to them for the award. I am really thankful.

"2024 was a great year for us and for me, personally. That year will go down as one of the best ones in my life, for sure. Just happy about all the accomplishments and honors I have received in Finland and here. Very thankful for that."

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