Team Canada’s 4 Nations Face-Off roster was officially unveiled yesterday, and to no one’s surprise, there are plenty of unhappy fans.
Given the amount of Canadian talent in the NHL, there are always going to be some great players left off their roster at these best-on-best events, and this proved no different. This is what the team will look like:
Sam Reinhart – Connor McDavid – Mitch Marner
Brad Marchand – Sidney Crosby – Nathan MacKinnon
Brandon Hagel – Brayden Point – Mark Stone
Sam Bennett – Anthony Cirelli – Travis Konecny
Seth Jarvis
Devon Toews – Cale Makar
Shea Theodore – Alex Pietrangelo
Josh Morrissey – Colton Parayko
Travis Sanheim
Jordan Binnington
Adin Hill
Sam Montembeault
This roster is loaded with talent, but there were many great players left off the team as well. Here’s a look at some of the biggest snubs.
1. Connor Bedard (Chicago Blackhawks)
Many were excited to see Connor Bedard on this team, given his undeniably bright future. A slow start with the Chicago Blackhawks hurt his case, though many still would have preferred to see him as the 13th forward over Seth Jarvis.
2. Steven Stamkos (Nashville Predators)
For many years, Steven Stamkos would have been a lock for any best-on-best tournament. He still has an incredible shot, and his 40 goals a season ago seemed to justify having a spot on this team. Like Bedard, a slow start with his new team, the Nashville Predators, may have played him off the roster.
3. Nick Suzuki (Montreal Canadiens)
Given his great two-way ability, Nick Suzuki seemed like a perfect fit for the fourth-line centre role. Anthony Cirelli wound up winning that battle, which has drawn some ire of fans and media alike.
4. Mark Scheifele (Winnipeg Jets)
Mark Scheifele’s 13 goals are tied for the team-lead on the NHL’s third-placed Winnipeg Jets. His strong start was one that garnered him serious consideration, though his less-than-stellar defensive play may have been what caused Canada’s coaching staff to steer clear.
5. MacKenzie Weegar (Calgary Flames)
Since joining the Calgary Flames, MacKenzie Weegar has quickly become one of the NHL’s better defencemen and is a big reason why they’ve gotten off to an impressive 13-9-4 start. His strong abilities at both ends of the ice have many feeling he should have been included over the likes of Colton Parayko and Travis Sanheim.
6. Evan Bouchard (Edmonton Oilers)
There are very few defencemen in the NHL as offensively gifted as Evan Bouchard. The Edmonton Oilers blue liner is coming off of a 32-point performance in last season’s playoffs and finished fifth in Norris Trophy voting. That said, his defensive deficiencies would have made him a big gamble at a tournament like this.
7. Zach Hyman (Edmonton Oilers)
Zach Hyman’s path to making this team was the fact that he’s shown excellent chemistry over the past few seasons with Connor McDavid. Had this roster been put together during the summer months, he likely would have had a spot. His struggles through the first quarter of the 2024-25 season really hurt his chances.
8. Alexis Lafreniere (New York Rangers)
It took some time, but Alexis Lafreniere has really started to prove why he went first overall in 2020. His rapid improvement had many projecting him to crack the roster, but it isn’t his time just yet. That could be a different story come the 2026 Winter Olympics.
9. Logan Thompson (Washington Capitals)
Logan Thompson’s absence from this team is a head-scratcher, given that he’s not only younger than Sam Montembeault, but has also had much stronger numbers throughout his career.
10. Robert Thomas (St. Louis Blues)
An early-season injury played a big part in Robert Thomas’s absence from this team. Coming off an 86-point season, he was a player many originally expected to be competing at this event.
11. Carter Verhaeghe (Florida Panthers)
Carter Verhaeghe played a huge role in the Florida Panthers Stanley Cup championship this past season and is one of the better goal scorers in the league. A plus/minus of -16 through just 26 games this season didn’t help his case.
12. Mat Barzal (New York Islanders)
Mat Barzal is another highly skilled forward who fell short of making Canada’s roster. He hasn’t played in over a month after suffering an upper-body injury against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
13. Dougie Hamilton (New Jersey Devils)
Another highly-touted offensive defenceman who failed to make this roster was Dougie Hamilton. He brings great size, standing at 6-foot-6, but is rather one-dimensional, similar to Bouchard.
14. Stuart Skinner (Edmonton Oilers)
Stuart Skinner was another goalie who was in the running to earn a spot. He’s coming off a Stanley Cup Final appearance but has had a dreadful start to his 2024-25 season, with a 2.97 GAA and a .889 SV% through 17 starts.
15. Tom Wilson (Washington Capitals)
Many fans hoped to see Canada add some physicality to their roster, resulting in Tom Wilson’s name being thrown around. Instead, they chose to go with a similar-styled player in Sam Bennett.
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