The National Hockey League announced today the first six players on the teams for the 4 Nations Face-Off played over a nine-day period from Feb. 12-20, 2025. Among them, Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon and defenseman Cale Makar were selected to Team Canada’s initial roster, while Avalanche forward Mikko Rantanan was chosen to the initial roster of Team Finland.
MacKinnon yesterday was awarded the 2023-24 Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL’s Most Valuable Player to his team as well as the Ted Lindsay Award as the NHL’s Most Outstanding Player. The centerman finished second in League scoring with 140 points (51g/89a) in 82 games this past season, breaking the Avalanche/Nordiques single-season franchise record for points. The 51g/89a scoring line marks career-highs for MacKinnon in both goals and assists and marked just the second time in the last 25 years a player reached both the 50-goal and 85-assist benchmarks in a season, joining Connor McDavid (64g/89a) in 2022-23.
The 6-foot, 200-pound forward has registered 899 points (335g/564a) in 791 career regular-season games and added 114 points (48g/66a) over 88 Stanley Cup Playoff contests. MacKinnon’s 899 points in the regular season rank third in the NHL since entering the League in 2013-14 behind only Sidney Crosby and McDavid. In postseason play, MacKinnon was a member of the 2022 Stanley Cup-winning Avalanche club where he totaled 24 points (13g/11a) and led the circuit in goals and power-play markers (6 - tied). His 1.30 points per game average ranks third in NHL history among those with at least 75 playoff games. Additional individual accolades include a recipient of the 2020 Lady Byng Trophy and the 2014 Calder Trophy.
MacKinnon, who will be 29 years old at the time of the 4 Nations Face-Off, has represented Team Canada at the IIHF World Championship three times since turning pro (2014, 2015 and 2017), and skated for them at the 2013 World Junior Championship. He metaled twice, capturing gold in 2015 and silver in 2017. In the three World Championship runs, MacKinnon registered 28 points (11g/17a) in 28 games, including leading Team Canada in scoring with 15 points (6g/9a) in 2017. Additional international experience includes suiting up for Team North America at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.
Makar finished third in the 2023-24 James Norris Memorial Trophy voting and was selected to the Second All-Star Team for his performance this past season, registering 90 points (21g/69a) in 77 games to rank second among League blueliners in goals, assists and points. He paced rearguards in points per game (1.17), power-play points (39) and shorthanded points (4, tied). Makar’s scoring line made him the 12th defenseman (29th instance) in NHL history to record 90 points in a campaign and the only instance by an Avalanche/Nordiques defenseman. Since his first regular season in 2019-20, Makar is the only Canadian defenseman to record multiple 20-goal seasons and one of two NHL blueliners in that span (Roman Josi).
The Calgary, Alberta native reached numerous career milestones in 2023-24, including his 300th career point on Jan. 20 at Philadelphia and his 200th assist on Nov. 18 at Dallas, becoming the fastest defenseman in NHL history to reach the 200-assist benchmark and second-fastest to 300 points. Makar also skated in his 300th career game on March 13 at Vancouver, with his 319 points at the conclusion of that contest marking the second-most ever by a rearguard through 300 showings. Entering 2024-25, Makar ranks third all-time among in points per game (1.07) among defensemen with at least 200 games played behind Bobby Orr (1.39) and Paul Coffey (1.09), boasting 336 career points (86g/250a) in 315 regular-season games.
Makar, who will be 26 years old at the time of the showcase, took home the Norris Trophy in 2021-22 after leading all blueliners in goals (28) and finishing second in points (86). Five days after winning the award, he was the recipient of the 2022 Conn Smythe as playoff MVP. Additional NHL accolades Makar has captured include the 2019-20 Calder Trophy, four consecutive Postseason All-NHL selections (2020-24) and picked for three straight NHL All-Star games (2021-24). Makar, Bobby Orr and Brian Leetch are the only players in NHL history to have won the Calder Memorial Trophy (Rookie of the Year), the Norris Trophy (top defenseman) and Conn Smythe Trophy (playoff MVP).
The 4 Nations Face-Off will be Makar’s first International Hockey experience since turning pro. He represented his country at the 2018 IIHF World Junior Championship and took home the gold medal. The blueliner was also selected to the Under-20 All-Star Team that season.
Rantanen, who will be playing for his home country of Finland, finished second on the Avalanche and eighth in league scoring with 104 points (42g/62a) in 80 games in 2023-24. The output set a career-high in assists while he matched his personal-high with nine game-winning goals and ended up one point shy of his career-best set the previous year. The nine game-winning goals shared the Colorado-lead with MacKinnon and ranked tied for seventh in the NHL. Rantanen also ranked among NHL skaters in points per game (1.30, 8th), power-play points (40, T-6th) and led all NHL forwards in average time on ice at 22:54.
The Nousiainen, Finland native was the first Avalanche player since the team relocated to score 30-plus goals in four consecutive seasons and the second to score 40 goals in consecutive seasons, joining MacKinnon the past two years. Rantanen also joined Teemu Selanne (1995-97) and Jari Kurri (five straight, 1982-87) as the only Finnish players to post back-to-back 100-point campaigns. On March 12 at Calgary, Rantanen registered his 600th career point in his 556th career game, the fifth fewest games to reach the milestone with the Avalanche/Nordiques history and the third-fewest by a Finnish player.
The 6-foot-4, 215-pound forward is the Avalanche team record-holder for most goals in a season with 55, set in 2022-23. Rantanen’s 97 goals since the start of that season rank tied for third in the NHL and pace all Finns. Dating back to 2020-21, Rantanen has collected 367 points (163g/204a). In that span, the winger shares the NHL-lead with four 30-goal seasons, produced five hat tricks (T-6th in NHL) and recorded 28 multi-goal games (T-5th in NHL).
Rantanen earned a selection to Team Finland for the 2015 and 2016 World Junior Championships and took home gold at the 2016 showcase that took place in Helsinki, Finland. The 27-year-old also represented Finland at the IIHF World Championship three straight times from 2016-18 as well as 2023, adding a silver medal to his collection in 2016.
The full rosters for the 4 Nations Face-Off will be announced at a later date.
