Canada final projected roster for 4 Nations Face-Off

The 2025 4 Nations Face-Off will be held from Feb. 12-20 in Montreal and Boston, with teams of NHL players from Finland, Sweden, Canada and the United States competing in a round-robin tournament. This will be the first best-on-best tournament since the World Cup of Hockey 2016 in Toronto.

The international tournament is about three months away, but the full rosters for each nation will be announced Dec. 4. The rosters for Finland and Sweden will be announced during a live show produced by NHL Network and made available globally. ESPN will also announce the remaining players representing Finland and Sweden during the 2 p.m. ET edition of SportsCenter. At 6:30 p.m. ET, the balance of rosters for Canada and the United States will be announced during live pre-game shows on Sportsnet and TNT leading into doubleheaders on each network.

Before that happens, NHL.com wanted to take an updated look at what each roster could look like, using a panel of three staff writers and editors to compile a list of 23 players (20 skaters, three goalies) for each team.

NHL.com Editor-in-Chief Bill Price, staff writer Derek Van Diest and LNH.com staff writer Nicolas Ducharme unveiled their original Canada roster in February, an updated one in July, and one earlier this month. With today marking the 107-year anniversary of the NHL being founded, Price, Van Diest and Ducharme take a final shot at predicting the roster with some minor changes.

Six players (marked by an asterisk) were named to the roster in June by their hockey federations.

Here is the Canada projected roster (listed alphabetically by position:

Forwards (13)

Mathew Barzal, New York Islanders
Connor Bedard, Chicago Blackhawks
Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins*
Travis Konecny, Philadelphia Flyers
Alexis Lafreniere, New York Rangers
Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche*
Brad Marchand, Boston Bruins*
Mitch Marner, Toronto Maple Leafs
Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers*
Brayden Point, Tampa Bay Lightning*
Sam Reinhart, Florida Panthers
Mark Scheifele, Winnipeg Jets
Mark Stone, Vegas Golden Knights

Let's be honest, this group is stacked, with Crosby, MacKinnon, McDavid, Marchand and Point leading the way. Canada's forward group is going to be a headache for the other countries no matter who is in it. The one change from our last projection is that Konecny is in, and Steven Stamkos of the Nashville Predators is out. It's hard to imagine a Canada national team without Stamkos, and he may make the actual team, but Van Diest and Ducharme did not have him on their rosters this time around. Perhaps the most interesting player to watch in the final week before the selections is Bedard, who has certainly struggled this season. The No. 1 pick in the 2023 NHL Draft was on all three of our rosters when this process started and he stayed there through earlier this month, and though he makes the cut here, Ducharme did not have him on his roster, replacing him with Zach Hyman of the Oilers. Along with Stamkos, I had Sam Bennett of the Florida Panthers on my roster, but Van Diest and Ducharme did not. I think Bennett provides the sandpaper Canada will need, especially against the likes of Matthew and Brady Tkachuk of the U.S., and I would love to see Bennett and Brad Marchand on the same team. Barzal, who has not played since Oct. 30 because of an upper-body injury, could return in early December, which is why he's still on our roster. The other forward to get a vote -- but not enough this time around -- was Dylan Strome of the Washington Capitals (on Van Diest's roster). -- Price

Defensemen (7)

Evan Bouchard, Edmonton Oilers
Dougie Hamilton, New Jersey Devils
Cale Makar, Colorado Avalanche*
Josh Morrissey, Winnipeg Jets
Alex Pietrangelo, Vegas Golden Knights
Shea Theodore, Vegas Golden Knights
Devon Toews, Colorado Avalanche

Canada will have one notable advantage over the other teams at the 4 Nations Face-Off: being able to count on established defensive pairs. Makar and Toews are one of the NHL's best duos with the Avalanche, and they'll be able to play together during the tournament. Theodore and Pietrangelo are also very familiar with each other, as they form the first pairing for the Vegas Golden Knights. The chemistry will work immediately. As for the third pair, offensive skills won't be an issue. Morrissey is tied for second in scoring among defensemen with 20 points (two goals, 18 assists) in 22 games, while Hamilton (17 points) and Bouchard (15) are not far behind. Will they be able to defend against some of the world's best players? That's the question. Drew Doughty, who suffered a fractured ankle for the Los Angeles Kings on Sept. 25, did not make the cut this time, neither did Islanders defenseman Noah Dobson, who had been selected by our panel at the start of the month. He is replaced by Hamilton. -- Ducharme

Goalies (3)

Logan Thompson, Washington Capitals
Adin Hill, Vegas Golden Knights
Cam Talbot, Detroit Red Wings

The first quarter of the season was supposed to clear up the goaltending picture for Canada, but if anything, it has complicated the issue. Without a clear No. 1, there are a number of contenders in the running to earn one of the three roster spots. The three goalies we selected at the beginning of November, Jordan Binnington, Sam Montembeault and Stuart Skinner have all struggled and were all dropped off our final list. Thompson is having an excellent first season with the Capitals and is a reason for their success this season. Hill has fought the puck at times this season but is capable of playing on the big stage for Canada, helping the Golden Knights win the Stanley Cup in 2023. Talbot also played his way onto the list. The 37-year-old could bring some stability to the position for Canada. -- Van Diest