As the second game of the 4 Nations Face-Off got set to go, it was clear that the Bell Centre fans were largely behind the underdog Team Finland in its battle with Team USA.
Similar to what we saw last night, the tone of the match was set early. On Wednesday, it was Canada exploding out of the game with an early highlight-reel goal. On Thursday, Team USA attempted to establish a physical game, first with a hit by Matthew Tkachuk along the boards, and then with a scrum in front of the Finnish net with J.T. Miller raising the temperature of the match.
Montreal Canadiens forward Joel Armia was called for cross-checking, giving the Americans a chance to score early on the power play just as Canada had the night before. Instead, the Finns, regarded for their defensive game, locked down the opposing power play and allowed no shots on goal.
Moments after the power play expired, Brock Nelson fired a shot off the underside of the crossbar that stayed out. Perhaps ruing the missed opportunities, Team USA pushed a bit too hard to open the scoring, and a pinch from their defence led to a three-on-two against. It was a deflection of a Henri Jokiharju shot that opened the scoring, as the defenceman matches the goal total he has posted through 39 games with the Buffalo Sabres.
Henri Jokiharju ouvre la marque, comme tout le monde s'y attendait! 😯 #4Nations
— LNH (@lnh-fr.bsky.social) February 13, 2025 at 9:42 PM
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The Americans continued to get good chances, and more posts, after falling behind. Next it was Auston Matthews’s chance to find iron, with a loud shot off the post behind Finnish goalie Juuse Saros.
They finally got what they were looking for with Saros a bit off his angle. Brady Tkachuk collected the puck below the goal line, but saw the goalie off his post and threw the puck at the net. It bounced off Saros and just over the goal line to tie the game at a goal apiece.
PLAY FREE BIRD! 🎵 BRADY TKACHUK TIES IT FOR THE US 🇺🇸 (via X/ESPN)
— TSN (@tsnofficial.bsky.social) February 13, 2025 at 9:55 PM
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Noah Hanifin got his stick between Patrik Laine’s feet with the puck in the American zone, and that gave the sniper a chance to put his team back on top. The crowd rose up as it was clear Finland was trying to work the puck across to him. They were hoping to cheer for a goal from the Montreal Canadiens winger, but his shot misses the net, and his unit exited the ice. Finland’s second unit had more of a focus on playing with the puck below the goal line, and was able to set up a small handful of its own chances.
It took a few minutes for the play to ramp up in the second period, but it was the Finns who got themselves back up to speed with more of the down-low setups that their second power-play unit had used to generate a few chances. Laine had the first great shot of the period, and the Finns followed up with more created from passes from below the goal line.
Despite the work from the Finns, Team USA earned a power play when Nicolas Matinpalo took Jake Guentzel hard into the boards. The Americans got some better looks than they had on their first man advantage, but Finland still kept its penalty kill perfect.
With the game returned to five-on-five, the Finns re-established their offensive-zone forechecking game to get more point-blank shots on Connor Hellebuyck. Though Finland carried the majority of the play, Team USA found a late go-ahead goal as a point shot from Brock Faber was perfectly deflected into the net by Matt Boldy.
Faber shot, Boldy deflection. Perfect.
— CJ Fogler (@cjzero.bsky.social) February 13, 2025 at 10:56 PM
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Earning an offensive-zone faceoff with just a few seconds to play, Team USA drew a penalty when Olli Maatta hooked the hands of Matthews off the lost draw. The Americans were set to have nearly a full two minutes of power-play time in the third period to attempt to extend their lead.
It took just 15 seconds for the U.S. to make that happen. Matthew Tkachuk fired a shot from the point, and Niko Mikkola deflected it just enough to put it past the glove of his goaltender.
What a freakin' shot from Tkachuk 😳
— CJ Fogler (@cjzero.bsky.social) February 13, 2025 at 11:20 PM
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Eleven seconds later, Team USA made it 4-1. Jake Guentzel took a pass with some space to work in, and Saros’ was unable to close down his five-hole before the puck sailed through it and in.
United States goal! Scored by Jake Guentzel with 19:34 remaining in the 3rd period. Assisted by Auston Matthews and Jack Hughes. Finland: 1 United States: 4 #USAvsFIN #TeamFinland #TeamUSA #4Nations
— NHL Goals (@nhlgoals.bsky.social) February 13, 2025 at 11:27 PM
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A couple of minutes later, Brady Tkachuk drove to the net and accepted a saucer pass from Jack Eichel. Tkachuk went to his backhand and beat Saros yet again.
BRADY TKACHUK AGAIN! Tkachuk takes Eichel's return feed to his backhand and scores, 5-1 USA 🇺🇸 #4Nations
— Hockey Daily 365 – NHL Highlights & News 🏒 (@hockeydaily365.bsky.social) February 13, 2025 at 11:26 PM
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Not willing to be outdone by his brother, Matthew Tkachuk took advantage of another power play in the middle of the frame to add his second of the game. A rebound fell right to his stick at the top of the crease, and Saros had no chance of getting across to cover off the shot as the elder sibling notched his second.
Matthew Tkachuk joins his brother Brady with his second goal of the night, 6-1 USA 🇺🇸 #4Nations
— Hockey Daily 365 – NHL Highlights & News 🏒 (@hockeydaily365.bsky.social) February 13, 2025 at 11:43 PM
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The game had been close through 40 minutes, but the Americans scored four in the final frame to run away with a 6-1 score.
