Every professional sport has a particularly important position that can dictate the outcome of games on its own. In the NFL, good teams need an athletic, durable quarterback to have any chance of winning a Super Bowl. Major League Baseball teams are always searching for ways to bolster their pitching staffs. NBA teams require their version of a quarterback with a creative guard who can distribute the ball or drain threes from long range. In hockey circles, it’s imperative to have an elite goaltender to elevate your chance of success in high leverage scenarios.
The 4 Nations Face-Off has potential to provide hockey enthusiasts with a buffet of entertaining games. Every roster, from Canada, to USA, Finland and Sweden, every roster is loaded with high-end skill at the forward and defence positions. It’s hard for me to imagine one team running away from the pack at the event. Every roster has its share of strengths and question marks.
But the team that wins the tournament will likely ride a hot goaltender. And I believe, after breaking down the rosters, there are a couple of teams with a significant advantage heading into the event.
-
-
4 Nations Face-Off
With the inaugural edition of the 4 Nations Face-Off fast approaching, be sure to catch up on all the latest news about the highly-anticipated best-on-best event. Puck drops on Feb. 12, 2025, on Sportsnet.
Here’s a look at the goaltenders who will be representing their countries at the 4 Nations Face-Off:
TEAM USA
The American team is dealing from a position of strength with their goaltenders. Connor Hellebuyck will be the starter for Team USA, but Jake Oettinger is more than capable and would be the starter on other teams in the tournament. Team USA has two top-flight No. 1 goalies on their roster.
Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets
The Jets are currently the top team in the NHL (39-14-3) and Hellebuyck has an incredible 34-7-2 record, a 2.06 GAA and .925 save percentage. The defending Vezina Trophy winner looks poised to win the award for the second time in a row and third overall.
Despite the fact Hellebuyck has enjoyed a great deal of regular season success in his career, his playoff results have been average in comparison. He has only won 18 of his 45 starts in the playoffs and his goals-against average spikes to 2.85, while his save percentage lands at .910. He has something to prove at the 4 Nations and a positive result could provide even more confidence for Hellebuyck when the Stanley Cup Playoffs begin in April.
Jake Oettinger, Dallas Stars
At 26 years old, Oettinger looks poised to be Team USA’s future No. 1 goaltender. He’s having a solid year in Dallas. The Stars are a contending team and Oettinger’s 26-12-2 record, combined with his 2.35 GAA and .911 save percentage, provides Dallas with security at the position. Oettinger has played in 38 playoff games the past two seasons and has already gained experience dealing with the pressure that comes with high leverage scenarios. In last year’s playoffs he posted an impressive 2.24 GAA and .913 save percentage.
Jeremy Swayman, Boston Bruins
Swayman and the Bruins went through a long, drawn-out contract negotiation in the off-season that didn’t get resolved until the eve of the regular season puck drop. He missed all of training camp in Boston and has suffered through some ups and downs in the first year of his new deal ($8.25 million for eight years). He’s team USA’s third goalie for the 4 Nations and not likely to suit up for any games. His 18-18-4 record, 2.98 GAA and .898 save percentage speak to his inconsistency this year in Boston.
TEAM CANADA
It will be interesting to see who wins the net for Team Canada. Long gone are the Martin Brodeur, Carey Price and Roberto Luongo years of elite goaltending for Canada on the international stage. I’m not sure the Canadian coaching staff and management group have settled on their starter for the tournament.
Jordan Binnington, St. Louis Blues
Binnington is a Stanley Cup champion with a 20-20 playoff record in his career and 2.73 GAA, .910 save percentage. Similar to Swayman, Binnington has had a very inconsistent year with the Blues. His 15-19-4 record, 2.89 GAA and .896 save percentage doesn’t exactly inspire confidence heading into the tournament, but the other goalies on Canada’s roster haven’t elevated their games either. I expect Binnington to start for Canada, but whoever it ends up being will be on a short leash at an event that requires a positive result every night. Canada can’t afford to lose a game due to poor goaltending. One loss in the round-robin makes for a more difficult journey to the final.
Adin Hill, Vegas Golden Knights
There is certainly an argument to be made for Hill to be Team Canada’s starter. I understand the reasoning and it certainly could happen. Hill has a 20-10-4 record this year with a goals-against average of 2.64 and a .900 save percentage. Those stats are better than Binnington’s, but Hill has allowed four goals against in four of his last six starts and has recently been splitting games with Ilya Samsonov for Vegas.
I haven’t loved Hill’s tracking, ability to finds pucks in traffic, and crease composure at times this year. Team Canada can’t have goals sneaking through their netminder when they are killing penalties. Goals against from high danger areas are acceptable, and understandable. But goals like the one in the following clip, that slip between the pads of the goaltender when he doesn’t get set and square to the play on time, simply can’t happen and has been too noticeable for Hill this season.
Sam Montembeault, Montreal Canadiens
The Canadiens are a rebuilding outfit and, depending on the week, capable of looking like a playoff team. They have been wildly inconsistent this year, however, and Montembeault’s results have mirrored his teammates. Montembeault is a nice story. He’s still coming into his own as an NHL starting goalie, but his last 10-game segment was all over the map. Only two of his starts ended with him allowing two goals against or less, and he posted a 3.00 GAA and .898 save percentage in the segment. He’s probably Team Canada’s third goalie for the tournament, but the fact the Habs give up more chances against than Vegas for example, has to be factored into his stats line.
TEAM SWEDEN
The Swedes looked set in goal with Jacob Markstrom likely to be the starter before going down with an MCL sprain. Markstrom is having a solid year in New Jersey and looks like the answer in net that they have been searching for in recent years. Before he was placed on injured reserve Markstrom had posted a 21-9-5 record, a 2.20 GAA and .912 save percentage.
But, without Markstrom available, Sweden will turn to these three goalies for the 4 Nations Face-Off:
Filip Gustavsson, Minnesota Wild
Gustavsson is Minnesota’s starter and one of the top goalies in the NHL. He’s big in the net (6-foot-2, 184 pounds) and very athletic. He has the ability to steal a game and, if named the starter, could be the key to Sweden’s success at the tournament. Gustavsson is only 26 years old and will be in the mix to be the starter for Team Sweden at the Olympics next year and beyond. On balance, his performance this NHL season has been very impressive (22-11-3, 2.63 GAA, .915 SV%) but his numbers fell off a bit in his last 10-game segment (3-5-1, 2.72 GAA, .906 SV%). It will be interesting to see how he responds to the challenge of these high leverage games.
Linus Ullmark, Ottawa Senators
Ullmark has only played 25 games for the Senators this year and has dealt with injuries that have led to long stretches of rehab. Ullmark is certainly capable of providing top flight goaltending for Team Sweden and might be the starter over Gustavsson. He’s posted a 12-9-2 record in his first season with the Senators. The former Vezina Trophy winner (2023) is a big body (6-foot-5, 212 pounds) who generally positions himself well to make first stops, but can get a bit messy in the crease when tasked with making second or third saves. His record in his last 10 games is 5-3-2 (2.68 GAA, .902 SV%).
Samuel Ersson, Philadelphia Flyers
Ersson has played 31 games for the Flyers this season and posted very respectable numbers (16-10-3, 2.81 GAA, .896 SV%) considering the Flyers are still growing as a team and provide inconsistent detail in front of their goalies when defending their zone. He’s only 25 years old with plenty of learning to do at the NHL and international levels. He will benefit from being around this group but I don’t see him getting into games.
TEAM FINLAND
Team Finland will no doubt be led by Nashville Predators goalie Juuse Saros at the tournament. Their chances of success rests heavily on him. The Finns are always a tough out on the international stage. They play with the kind of structure, and compete, that leads to their skill players having the time and space to produce offence. But their defence was heavily banged up ahead of the event.
Juuse Saros, Nashville Predators
Saros is a workhorse for the Predators. He and Hellebuyck play more than most other NHL starting goalies.
The Preds are having a disappointing year and Saros’ stats reflect a team that has struggled from the outset. The 5-foot-10, 180-pound goalie is very athletic. He’s active in his crease, but makes himself as big as possible fronting shooters to take away net. His 11-23-6 record, combined with his 2.95 GAA and .898 save percentage is the worst of his NHL career, but he’s plenty capable of stealing games for the Finns.
Kevin Lankinen, Vancouver Canucks
It’s debatable who ends up being Finland’s backup goalie at the tournament but Lankinen is a great story this year. He was picked up late in free agency by the Canucks, but is a big part of the reason the Canucks were able to win games early in the year with their starter Thatcher Demko rehabbing from injury. Prior to this season, Lankinen’s career high in games played was 37 with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2020-21. He’s already played 34 games for the Canucks this season and posted a 2.53 GAA and .905 save percentage, with a 19-8-7 record.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Buffalo Sabres
Luukkonen has won the crease in Buffalo. He’s their undisputed starting goalie, having played 37 games so far this season already. The Sabres are an unpredictable outfit, to say the least, and Luukkonen has had some tough nights. On balance, however, his body of work has resulted in a respectable 18-16-4 record, a 3.02 GAA and .895 save percentage. He generally gives the Sabres a chance to win on a nightly basis. Luukkonen is a big goalie, listed at 6-foot-5, 216 pounds. He’s only 25 years young so he will have a role on Team Finland for the foreseeable future and will definitely benefit from the experience of the 4 Nations Face-Off.
GOALIE RANKINGS
Heading into the tournament here is how I see the teams ranking by their goaltenders:
No. 1: USA
No. 2: Sweden
No. 3: Finland
No. 4: Canada
