Latest news with #4NationsFinal
Time of India
11 hours ago
- Sport
- Time of India
Is the NHL's 4 Nations Face-Off quietly dethroning the NBA Finals in American sports viewership?
NHL's 4 Nations Face-Off, featuring USA, Canada, Sweden, and Finland, surprisingly rivaled the NBA Finals in viewership (Getty Images) For the first time in nearly a decade, NHL fans were treated to an international showdown as the 4 Nations Face-Off brought together the USA, Canada, Sweden, and Finland. While hockey purists rejoiced at the return of global play, what caught the sports world by surprise was just how popular the tournament became—rivaling, and even threatening to eclipse, the NBA Finals in television viewership. Hockey gains ground as NBA Finals viewership takes a hit The 2025 NBA Finals were everything a basketball fan could ask for. A thrilling seven-game series between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Indiana Pacers, culminating in a 103–91 Thunder win, delivered high-stakes drama and a stellar 29-point, 12-assist performance by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. But even with all that action, Game 7 averaged 16.35 million viewers—strong, yet down 9.3% from last year's series average. — _puckChirps (@_puckChirps) In comparison, the NHL's 4 Nations Final pulled in 16.1 million viewers—just 0.25 million behind Game 7 of the NBA Finals. Even more telling was the NHL event's growth: up a staggering 25% from the last international hockey tournament, the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. National pride and rivalry gave the NHL the edge Much of the 4 Nations Face-Off's appeal stemmed from its novelty and underlying fan tension—particularly between American and Canadian supporters. Viewers were captivated by the return of top NHL talent to international ice, including Team Canada's Cale Makar, who said after the final, 'I mean, it's incredible. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 15 Most Gorgeous Women, Ranked BigGlobalTravel Undo I just hope everybody enjoyed watching the game. It was a lot of fun for us to play in.' Even legends like Sidney Crosby were caught in the crossfire of anthem-related tensions, but stayed neutral: 'I'm not going to get into that. We respect the anthems, and I'll leave it at that.' Also Read: NHL Rumors: Blackhawks delay contract extension talks with Connor Bedard despite rising value and strong commitment The NHL hasn't confirmed a second edition of the 4 Nations Face-Off, but the numbers suggest it would be a mistake not to. If the NBA's downward viewership trend continues, and the NHL builds on this patriotic momentum, hockey might just become the hottest ticket in American sports. For real-time updates, scores, and highlights, follow our live coverage of the India vs England Test match here . Game On Season 1 kicks off with Sakshi Malik's inspiring story. Watch Episode 1 here
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
PHI@PIT: Ersson with a great save against Kevin Hayes
Update on Charlie McAvoy after he was ruled out for 4 Nations Final Team USA Head Coach Mike Sullivan gives update on Charlie McAvoy, and how his spirits have been since entering the hospital and being ruled out for the 4 Nations on Charlie McAvoy after he was ruled out for 4 Nations Final originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
USA Today
25-02-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Matthew Tkachuk 'feeling better' after 4 Nations Face-Off injury, wants redemption
Matthew Tkachuk 'feeling better' after 4 Nations Face-Off injury, wants redemption Show Caption Hide Caption Concertgoers celebrate with 'O Canada' post 4 Nations win against USA After Canada beat the USA in the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament, concertgoers celebrated with the Canadian national anthem. Team USA star Matthew Tkachuk, who missed the end of Canada's 4 Nations Final overtime win with an injury, said he is "feeling better" and likes the team's chances for redemption at the 2026 Winter Olympics. There has been concern about how long Tkachuk might miss with the injury as his Florida Panthers finish the season and prepare for their Stanley Cup defense. He told Jimmy Fallon during an appearance Monday night on "The Tonight Show" that he was better and "just recovering right now." The Panthers are expected to have an answer on Tuesday on the recovery timeline as Tkachuk got his final tests. When asked about a report that Tkachuk could miss the rest of the season, coach Paul Maurice disputed it. "He'll play," he told reporters. Tkachuk and brother Brady played a big role in the tournament. Both scored twice in the opener against Finland and opened the first Canada game with a fight — part of three fights in nine seconds. "I think myself and all the guys that were in this were so jacked up for it and I think that's why you saw all the fights at the beginning of that game against Canada," Matthew Tkachuk said. "I think guys wanted to get our anger out of the way." But his time was limited after that because of a lower-body injury that kept him on the bench at the end of the Canada game, caused him to miss the Sweden game, and kept him out of the final after the middle of the second period. Tkachuk said he enjoyed playing on the same team as his brother for the first time. He did note they played together in the All-Star Game, "but that's fake." "We grew up always competing against each other and dreaming eventually one day — he plays in Ottawa, I'm in Florida so we knew it was going to be tough in the regular season — but we always had the dream of playing with each other and it finally came true," Tkachuk said. The Tkachuks will get a chance again in the 2026 Olympics, which features more teams than the U.S., Canada, Finland, and Sweden. Matthew Tkachuk noted that all the teams will be star-studded but he likes Team USA's chances. "We got so close with this tournament and looking at next year being kind of our chance at redemption, I truly believe in our chances," he said. "Wearing the USA crest, there is nothing like it. We have so much pride in it and we'll be ready to go."
USA Today
21-02-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
USA vs Canada: Canadian D Josh Morrissey to miss 4 Nations final with illness
USA vs Canada: Canadian D Josh Morrissey to miss 4 Nations final with illness Show Caption Hide Caption Team USA seeks back-to-back wins over Canada in the 4 Nations Face-Off Final USA and Canada are officially set to rematch in the 4 Nations Final on Thursday at 8 P.M. at TD Garden. Sports Seriously Editor's note: Follow USA vs. Canada live updates from the 4 Nations Face-Off hockey final. For the second game in a row against the USA, Canada will be without a blueliner due to illness. Winnipeg Jets defender Josh Morrissey will be out for Thursday's 4 Nations Face-Off championship game against the USA, despite the return of Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar, who missed the first bout against the United States. That means that for the second game in a row against Team USA, Thomas Harley — who was added as an emergency replacement for the injured Shea Theodore after the first game of the 4 Nations Face-Off — will see action against the red white and blue for Team Canada. Morrissey, 29, was scoreless during the round-robin portion of the tournament. Harley will join the Kings' Drew Doughty on the third defensive pairing for Canada. Travis Sanheim will now join Colton Parayko on the second pair. Harley played well for Canada during its round-robin clash with the United States, which Team USA ultimately won 3-1. Harley logged 18:17 on the ice and took a pair of shots on goal, while blocking three shots on the other end. Why is Josh Morrissey out for Canada hockey vs USA? Morrissey was a late scratch for Canada against the USA because of an illness, making him the second defender to miss a game for Canada vs the United States after getting sick. Who is Josh Morrissey's replacement? Thomas Harley, a 23-year-old defender for the Dallas Stars, will see action against the United States for the second time this tournament. Harley has seen action for Canada since being brought on to replace Shea Theodore, who was injured in Canada's opener vs Sweden. He played against the United States in the round-robin, logging a plus-minus of -1 in 18:17. He had a hit and three blocked shots along with two shots on net. Harley has 29 points (nine goals, 20 assists) so far this season, with a plus-minus of 26 for the Stars.
USA Today
20-02-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
Opinion: US athletes now treated as ugly Americans, thanks to President Trump
Opinion: US athletes now treated as ugly Americans, thanks to President Trump Show Caption Hide Caption Team USA seeks back-to-back wins over Canada in the 4 Nations Face-Off Final USA and Canada are officially set to rematch in the 4 Nations Final on Thursday at 8 P.M. at TD Garden. Sports Seriously U.S. athletes should get used to being treated as the ugly Americans. The U.S. men's hockey team probably won't hear a repeat of the boos during the 'Star-Spangled Banner' before Thursday night's 4 Nations Face-Off final that they did Saturday. But only because the game is being played in Boston. If it was in Montreal or Toronto, or any other Canadian city, there'd be more of the heckling and jeering we've heard over the last three weeks. Boos before NHL games. Boos before NBA games. Boos before PWHL games. Probably boos during next year's Milan Cortina Olympics, too. So long as President Donald Trump continues to bully our closest neighbor, set fire to decades-long alliances and dehumanize foreign citizens, American athletes will feel the repercussions. And no, this isn't simply the byproduct of a heated rivalry. Fans are usually respectful of the anthems of other countries. But when we are disrespecting their countries, we should not be surprised that the response is raw and it's real. 'The reaction (was), 'Wow.' And then you just think about why they're booing,' Toronto Raptors forward Garrett Temple, who is American, told The Athletic after hearing boos ahead of a Feb. 2 home game against the Los Angeles Clippers. 'A lot of things bigger than basketball going on in the world right now. At the end of the day, we play in an arena that's in Canada and they're Canadian citizens, so they have a certain feeling about the trade situation going on, the tariffs,' Temple said. 'The people that booed let their thoughts be known.' More: 4 Nations Face-Off final: Date, time, how to watch United States vs. Canada Another view: Vance's speech shows VP's star is on the rise. I'm proud of America again. Some athletes no doubt support the wrecking ball Trump is wielding. Others do not. But all will serve as stand-ins for the president because, for many people, athletes representing the United States are an extension of the people running the United States. The average Canadian will never have the opportunity to let Trump know what they think of the potentially crippling tariffs he has threatened to level out of a misguided understanding of economics, or his juvenile insistence that Canada become our 51st state. Ordinary Ukrainians will never be able to express their outrage to Trump for characterizing their country as the instigator of Russia's unprovoked invasion in 2022 and selling them out to Vladimir Putin. Citizens of Guatemala, El Salvador, China and other countries will never have the chance to tell Stephen Miller of their disgust at the degrading way we're treating their fellow citizens. They can, however, let a chorus of boos rain down during our anthem or direct jeers at American athletes. It's a way of giving a middle finger to Trump, his minions and everyone who supports the chaos and cruelty, even if they don't hear it themselves. Some U.S. athletes will tune it out completely. Others will acknowledge the hostility, maybe even express understanding for the reasons behind it. And some will use it as motivation, ratcheting the game up into a faux proxy war. That's what the U.S. hockey team seems to be doing. After the crowd in Montreal booed during 'The Star-Spangled Banner' before Saturday's 4 Nations game, U.S. players picked fights with Canadians as soon as the puck dropped. The team GM has since extended an invitation for Trump to attend Thursday night's rematch. 'We would love it if President Trump was in attendance," Bill Guerin, Team USA's GM, said during an appearance on Fox News' "America's Newsroom" on Monday. "We have a room full of proud American players and coaches and staff. Listen, we're just trying to represent our country the best way we can." The same could be said of those heckling U.S. athletes and booing during our anthem, too, though. When the United States is punching down on just about everyone but Russia, we can't be surprised when those countries respond, regardless of the form that takes. Follow USA TODAY Sports columnist Nancy Armour on social media @nrarmour.
