4 Nations Final live blog: Jarvis in for Canada, Konecny out
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The final of the 4 Nations Face-Off is just hours away as Team Canada will take on Team USA in Boston. Follow all the latest ahead of puck drop on TSN.ca.
Jarvis to draw back in for Canada, Konecny out again
Carolina Hurricanes winger Seth Jarvis will draw back into Team Canada's lineup for the final, he confirmed after Thursday's morning skate.
The 23-year-old Jarvis did not play in Monday's win over Finland and did not take line rushes in Wednesday's practice. The Winnipeg native had one assist over the first two games of the tournament, logging exactly 11:07 of ice time against Sweden and the United States.
Travis Konecny replaced Jarvis in the lineup on Monday, but sit once again against Team USA on Thursday. Sam Bennett was scratched for Team Canada's opening game, with Konecny sitting in the first game against Team USA.
Konecny skated on the fourth line in Wednesday's practice with Brad Marchand and Bennett. He finishes the tournament without a point in two games and a minus-3. In 57 games with the Philadelphia Flyers this season, Konecny has 22 goals and 61 points.
Jarvis has 22 goals and 45 points in 49 games with the Carolina Hurricanes this season. He had an assist in Canada's overtime win over Sweden last week.
Jarvis did special teams work at the morning skate on Thursday, suggesting he would play. He worked on the second power-play unit with Josh Morrissey, Mitch Marner, Mark Stone and Brayden Point. Cale Makar worked with Connor McDavid, Sam Reinhart, Nathan MacKinnon and Sidney Crosby on the top unit.
Who will be named MVP?
A 4 Nations Face-Off tournament MVP will be crowned Thursday and the award appears to be up for grabs heading into the final between Team Canada and the United States.
Team USA goalie Connor Hellebuyck is the betting favourite at FanDuel at +250 ahead of the final. Hellebuyck is 2-0 at the tournament, having rested during the Americans meaningless 2-1 loss to Sweden on Monday.
Over his two starts - a 6-1 win over Finland and a 3-1 win over Canada - Hellebuyck has a 1.00 GAA and a .957 save percentage.
Canada's Connor McDavid has the second-highest odds for tournament MVP at FanDuel, going off at +290 ahead of puck drop. The Edmonton Oilers superstar has two goals and two assists through three games.
Team Canada captain Sidney Crosby enters Thursday's championship game with the tournament lead in points with one goal and four assists through three games. He is +490 to win tournament MVP, ahead of fellow Nova Scotia native Nathan MacKinnon, who is +600 with three goals at the tournament.
See the full MVP breakdown here.
4 Nations Need to Know
TSN Hockey Insider Chris Johnston came through with some key notes ahead of puck drop on Thursday.
If overtime is needed in the final, the two teams will play at five-on-five in 20 minute periods until a winner is crowned - the same format as in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
The winning team will claim the tournament trophy, medals and a cash prize.
A tournament MVP will be named on Thursday, voted on by a panel of 12 broadcasters.
Politics fuel rivalry
United States President Donald Trump injected even more energy into Thursday's 4 Nations Face-Off final with his social media comments but do his words penetrate the mindset of the players as they prepare for a massive game? Ryan Rishaug is joined by TSN Hockey Insiders Pierre LeBrun and Chris Johnston to discuss the significance of this game being politicized and the storylines ahead of the game:
Berube backs Binnington
Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube won a Stanley Cup with the St. Louis Blues with Jordan Binnington in net.
He believes Team Canada head coach John Cooper's faith in Binnington will be rewarded Thursday just as his was in 2019.
Berube is predicting a 3-2 win for Canada in the championship game.
USA's scratch unclear
Winnipeg Jets winger Kyle Connor said after Thursday's morning skate he did not know whether he will be a healthy scratch for Team USA in the 4 Nations Face-Off final.
The 28-year-old forward has one assist in three games at the tournament and logged just 8:32 of ice time in Saturday's win over Canada.
Team USA head coach Mike Sullivan said it will be a gametime decision on his lineup with all forward options available to the team.
In practice on Wednesday, Connor skated on a line with Jack Eichel and Matthew Tkachuk, seemingly filling in for the absent Brady Tkachuk. Auston Matthews centred a line between Jack Hughes and Jake Guentzel during that session.
In the bottom six, Dylan Larkin skated between J.T. Miller and Matt Boldy, while Chris Kreider skated on a line with New York Rangers teammate Vincent Trocheck and Brock Nelson of the New York Islanders.
Kreider was a scratch for the United States in each of their first two games, but scored the team's lone goal against Sweden. He did not take part in the optional skate on Thursday.
Under Pressure
After winning gold at Vancouver 2010, Sochi 2014 and the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, Canada still sits atop the hockey world.
Team USA is under pressure to change that on Thursday night.
Craig Button joins Gino Reda to break down the situation:
Brady Tkachuk on ice
Ottawa Senators captain Brady Tkachuk was on the ice for Team USA Thursday for their gameday skate after missing practice Wednesday due to illness.
Brady exited the team's loss to Sweden on Monday in the first period, a move head coach Mike Sullivan labelled as precautionary.
With Brady Tkachuk, Matthew Tkachuk and Auston Matthews all appearing good to play against Canada, Team USA will have their full compliment of forwards to choose from as they decide who to scratch for the championship game.
The other forwards on the ice for Thursday's optional skate were J.T. Millers, Matt Boldy, Vincent Trocheck, Brock Nelson, Kyle Connor, Jack Hughes, Jake Guentzel and Dylan Larkin. Extra work after the skate for any of the forwards will hint towards the team's scratch.
All six defencemen were on the ice for Team USA, along with all three goaltenders.
Matthews has one assist in two games at the tournament, Matthew Tkachuk has two goals and an assist in two games and Brady Tkachuk has two goals across the three games he's dressed in.
Lineup questions for Team USA
While Canada appears set to stick with the same lineup used to defeat Finland, it's unclear who will be scratched for Team USA on Thursday.
Brady Tkachuk missed practice on Wednesday after exiting the team's meaningless 2-1 loss to Sweden on Monday in the first period, but both head coach Mike Sullivan and his brother Matthew Tkachuk said they expect the Ottawa Senators captain to play.
American captain Auston Matthews and Matthew Tkachuk both also declared themselves good to go after sitting against Sweden due to injuries.
Chris Kreider was a scratch for the United States in each of their first two games, but scored the team's lone goal against Sweden.
Winnipeg Jets star Kyle Connor skated on a line with Jack Eichel and Matthew Tkachuk, seemingly taking Brady's spot in practice on Wednesday. Matthews centred a line between Jack Hughes and Jake Guentzel.
In the bottom six, Dylan Larkin skated between J.T. Miller and Matt Boldy, while Kreider skated on a line with New York Rangers teammate Vincent Trocheck and Brock Nelson of the New York Islanders.
The Americans rotated through defence pairings in Wednesday's skate, leaving their pairs unclear as Jake Sanderson enters the lineup in place of the injured Charlie McAvoy for the second straight game.
Sanderson, a late add to the roster to replace Quinn Hughes, made his tournament debut against Sweden, logging 17:08 of ice time. The Ottawa Senators defenceman has five goals and 35 points in 55 games with his club this season, averaging a team-high 24:24 of ice time.
The United States leaned heavily on Jaccob Slavin and Brock Faber in their first game against Canada, with both finishing with over 25 minutes of ice time. Noah Hanifin sat just above McAvoy with 20:13 of ice time, while Zach Werenski and Adam Fox saw just under 14 minutes of ice time each.
Connor Hellebuyck will get the start in net for the Americans, looking to improve to a perfect 3-0 at the tournament after resting on Monday.
The United States put Buffalo Sabres forward Tage Thompson and New Jersey Devils defenceman Brett Pesce on notice Wednesday evening in case of injury or illness on their roster, according to The Athletic.
Canada sticks with Binnington
Team Canada is set to start St. Louis Blues netminder Jordan Binnington for a fourth straight game in Thursday's final.
Binnington allowed two goals on 22 shots in Saturday's round-robin loss to the Americans. He turned aside 23 of 26 shots in the must-win game over Finland on Monday, holding a shutout into the third period before the Finns scored three goals in just over five minutes.
For the tournament, Binnington has a 2.60 goals-against average and a .892 save percentage. In tow games with Team USA, Hellebuyck has a 1.00 GAA and a .957 save percentage.
Carolina Hurricanes forward Seth Jarvis, who was scratched for Monday's 5-3 win over Finland, appears set to sit once again Thursday, based on Wednesday's practice lines. Jarvis had one assist over the first two games of the tournament, logging exactly 11:07 of ice time against Sweden and the United States.
Travis Konecny was scratched for Canada's 3-1 loss to the United States on Saturday, but returned to the lineup Monday. He skated on the fourth line Wednesday with Brad Marchand and Sam Bennett, who was scratched for the opening game against Sweden, on Wednesday.
Connor McDavid centred a top line with Brayden Point and Mark Stone, while Sidney Crosby worked on the wing beside Nathan MacKinnon and Sam Reinhart. Mitch Marner was with Tampa Bay Lightning teammates Anthony Cirelli and Brandon Hagel on the third line.
Devon Toews was once again with Colorado Avalanche teammate Cale Makar in the top pairing defence. Winnipeg Jets star Josh Morrissey paired with Colton Parayko, with Travis Sanheim and Drew Doughty paired together.
Trump to call Team USA
Team USA will hear from American president Donald Trump before tonight's game.
In a Truth Social post early Thursday, Trump repeated his suggestion of Canada becoming a 51st state as he wished the U.S. hockey team good luck.
"I’ll be calling our great American Hockey Team this morning to spur them on towards victory tonight against Canada," he said, adding that he won't be at the game because he will speaking with governors in Washington.
"We will all be watching, and if Governor Trudeau would like to join us, he would be most welcome," Trump said.
Amid rising tensions, the American anthem was met with boos during the tournament games in Montreal last week, with the Canadian anthem receiving light boos before their game against Finland in Finland.