Panthers have plenty of rooting interest in 4 Nations Face-Off championship

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Of all the teams in the NHL, the Florida Panthers had a unique perspective of the 4 Nations Face-Off.

The Panthers had a League-high eight players among the four teams in the tournament, and with at least one player on each team, were guaranteed at least one of their own coming back to South Florida a champion.

The United States faces Canada in the championship game at TD Garden on Thursday (8 p.m. ET; Disney+, ESPN+, ESPN, SN, TVAS).

Either United States forward Matthew Tkachuk or Canada forwards Sam Reinhart and Sam Bennett will return victorious from Boston.

All three are expected to be back with the Panthers on Saturday, when they resume the NHL season against the Seattle Kraken at Amerant Bank Arena.

“It is very captivating because we have players on each team, and I am really interested in watching them play,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice said Thursday, following his team’s first practice since the 4 Nations Face-Off break began almost two weeks ago.

“It’s the spectacle of it; you see many stars in our game. There was a section of time that they missed out on the Olympics and some things … you have a generation of players exposing themselves [to international play] for the first time. Having Canada and the U.S. in the final should get a lot of viewers. It’s good for the game. Been fun to watch.”

Regardless of how the game goes, one thing is sure: Tkachuk, and his younger brother Brady Tkachuk, have put their stamp all over the 4 Nations Face-Off.

Each scored twice on Feb. 13 in the United States’ 6-1 win against Finland, which has four Florida players, who were all in the lineup (forwards Aleksander Barkov, Anton Lundell and Eetu Luostarinen, and defenseman Niko Mikkola).

On Saturday, Matthew Tkachuk fought Canada forward Brandon Hagel on the opening face-off, with Brady fighting Bennett on the next face-off.

“He is doing everything he can to win, creating energy for his team,” Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad said of Matthew Tkachuk. “He is scoring goals, and he and his brother are obviously a pretty unstoppable duo. It’s really fun to watch.’’

The Florida players were not surprised to see Matthew Tkachuk front-and-center of everything the United States has done thus far.

Each Tkachuk brother is expected to play Thursday after missing all or part of a 2-1 loss to Sweden on Monday. Matthew Tkachuk sustained a lower-body injury against Canada and did not play Monday; Brady, captain of the Ottawa Senators, was injured Monday, left in the first period and did not return.

“A lot of people are watching this, and he loves that,” Panthers defenseman Dmitry Kulikov said of Matthew Tkachuk. “If I was going to pick anyone to play like this in this tournament, it would be him.’’

When asked about Matthew Tkachuk stirring things up, Florida forward Carter Verhaeghe laughed.

“Pretty standard for him,” Verhaeghe said. “Not a surprise. I knew he was going to do something. That’s him.”

For obvious reasons, the Panthers have a high interest in what happens tonight.

Ekblad, who is from Windsor, Ontario, plans to watch the game with his family at a steakhouse in Fort Lauderdale.

Ekblad said the intensity of last Saturday’s game between the United States and Canada will be hard to match.

“As a fan, that was a beautiful thing to watch,” he said.

Before the tournament started, Maurice said he did not expect the teams' efforts to ramp up to playoff level until the final, but the action has been fast and furious since the tournament began in Montreal on Feb. 12.

Maurice, who also is Canadian, stayed true to his statement before the tournament began: He has no rooting interest in the game.

But, as he has throughout it, Maurice will be watching.

“Cheer for your guys, right? You've got three players left,” Maurice said. “The rooting interest is, just stay healthy. That’s it. I just want everyone to end healthy. But the spectacle as a fan, I’m looking forward to watching this game. The tension of it, you just don’t get this kind of juice in the middle of a hockey season.’’

Ekblad echoed that sentiment.

The Panthers, after all, have 25 games remaining in the regular season before they try to defend the Stanley Cup.

“I just hope all my teammates come home healthy,” Ekblad said. “But it has been fun to watch.’’