The NHL will add a new event to its 2024-25 schedule that will pit players from Canada, the United States, Finland and Sweden against each other.
The league announced Friday the 2025 NHL 4 Nations Faceoff, which will feature seven games played over nine days from Feb. 12-20. The tournament will be held in two cities, one in the United States and one in Canada.
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said in a press conference Friday that the league and NHL Players Association have plans for an international calendar through 2032, including allowing players to participate in the Winter Olympics for the first time since 2014.
Each team is made up of 23 players selected by their respective national hockey associations (Canadian Hockey Association, Finnish Ice Hockey Association, Swedish Ice Hockey Association, and United States Hockey Association).
Tournaments are contested in a traditional round robin format. A regulation win is worth 3 points. Overtime or shootout wins are worth 2 points. He’s worth 1 point if you lose in overtime or a shootout. And regulatory losses are worth zero points.
Overtime for the round-robin portion of the tournament will feature a 10-minute 3-on-3 sudden-death period, followed by a three-round shootout. The championship game will be contested at full strength with 20 consecutive minutes of sudden-death overtime until either team scores.
Eligible players must have an NHL contract for the 2024-25 season and be on an NHL roster as of December 2, 2024. The first six players for each of the four teams will be announced by the NHL and NHLPA this summer. The remaining members of the team will be revealed later this year.
The NHL will not hold a traditional All-Star Weekend in the 2024-25 season.