Overtime thoughts

Whether National Hockey League commissioner Gary Bettman anticipated the level of excitement that replacing the all-star game with a best-on-best tournament would generate is uncertain. However, it was undeniably a genius idea. The four nations participating in this tournament were Canada, the United States, Finland, and Sweden. From start to finish, with different storylines in every game, this tournament captivated audiences. Heightened political tensions between Canada and the United States added another layer of intensity, drawing in many non-hockey fans who saw the matchups as symbolic of national pride and rivalry.

When this tournament was announced, Many initially dismissed the tournament as a glorified all-star game, but the intensity of the Canada-U.S. matchup on the 15th quickly proved otherwise. Three fights breaking out in the first nine seconds of the game showed the fans that this tournament meant much more than just a hockey game. The U.S. won the game 3-1, totaling over 10 million viewers, the most watched non-Stanley Cup since 2014, setting up a highly anticipated gold-medal rematch on Thursday.

Hockey fans had been begging for a best-on-best tournament for years since the last time a tournament like this happened was in 2016 with the World Cup of Hockey. Canada was victorious over Team Europe, but the significance of that win was not nearly as important in comparison to the political implications surrounding the Canada-U.S. finals. With ongoing tariffs talk and diplomatic disagreements between the two nations, the championship game took on an added layer of intensity, symbolizing not just a battle for hockey bragging rights but also national pride in a broader geopolitical context.

With the score tied at two after three periods, the game headed into overtime, where the next goal would decide the winner. After eight minutes and 18 seconds of play, Connor McDavid shot it over U.S. Goaltender Connor Hellybuck’s glove to win it for Canada. After the game, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took to X (formerly Twitter) after Connor McDavid scored the overtime goal, posting, “You can’t take our country – and you can’t take our sport.”

“It was much more popular than even we would have imagined,’’ said 4 Nations Face-Off MVP Nathan MacKinnon. “It was getting so much attention from our whole continent. It was pretty cool, the buildup over the last three days of Canada versus USA. A lot of stuff is going on with Canada and the USA right now, and us playing against each other was kind of a perfect storm for our sport.” ESPN reported that the championship game was the most-watched hockey game ever on their network, peaking at 10.4 million.

This tournament was a breath of fresh air for hockey fans, which was clear with the social media engagement and TV ratings. All eyes are now on Milan, Italy, where these nations will face off again at the 2026 Winter Olympics. NHL players will be able to participate in the Olympics for the first time since 2014 in Sochi.