The end of the 4 Nations Face-Off is the beginning of the road to the Stanley Cup Playoffs with eight games televised by ABC, TNT, "Hockey Night in Canada," NHL Network and "Prime Monday Night Hockey."
The Minnesota Wild and Detroit Red Wings lead off a 14-game Saturday and a wild 72 hours with 10 games on Sunday and the Presidents' Trophy-contending Winnipeg Jets hosting the San Jose Sharks on Monday. The playoff races were tight entering the 4 Nations break. Seven teams in the Eastern Conference are separated by five points in the race for the two wild-card spots into the playoffs. There's a little more breathing room in the Western Conference, where the Calgary Flames are three points behind the Vancouver Canucks for the second wild card.
Canada won the 4 Nations Face-Off with a 3-2 overtime victory against the United States in the championship game at TD Garden in Boston on Thursday, capping a landmark achievement for the ESPN networks. A 3-1 victory for the U.S. against Canada on Feb. 14 drew 10.1 million viewers across North America, up 203 percent from Team Canada defeating Team USA 4-2 at the World Cup of Hockey 2016 and better than any non-Stanley Cup Final game since 2014.
Four days before the start of the tournament, a 4-3 win for the Vegas Golden Knights at the Boston Bruins marked the largest audience of the regular season: 1.3 million viewers and a peak of 2.1 million. The game was the second most-viewed during a season since ESPN acquired the rights to televise the NHL on March 10, 2021, excluding outdoor games and opening night.
Here's a look at what's airing nationally:
SATURDAY
Minnesota Wild at Detroit Red Wings (1 p.m. ET; ABC, ESPN+)
The Red Wings (28-22-5) hold the second wild card in the East, one point behind the Ottawa Senators and one ahead of the Bruins and Columbus Blue Jackets. They won seven in a row before losing 6-3 to the Tampa Bay Lightning at Little Caesars Arena on Feb. 8, are 15-5-1 since coach Todd McLellan replaced Derek Lalonde on Dec. 26 and will face the Blue Jackets in the 2025 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series at Ohio Stadium on March 1. The Wild (33-19-4) are third in the Central Division after not qualifying for the playoffs last season. Goalie Filip Gustavsson returns from the 4 Nations, where he made two starts for Sweden. His 37 saves in a 2-1 victory against the Carolina Hurricanes at Xcel Energy Center on Feb. 6 was his 63rd with Minnesota, passing Dwayne Roloson (62) for fourth in Wild history.
Washington Capitals at Pittsburgh Penguins (3 p.m. ET; ABC, ESPN+, SN360, TVAS)
The big story for the Capitals (36-11-8) besides their NHL-best .727 points percentage is Alex Ovechkin's pursuit of Wayne Gretzky's NHL record 894 goals. Washington's captain (879) is 16 away from breaking the mark and scored in four straight games before a 5-4 shootout loss to the Utah Hockey Club on Feb. 9, when his three assists gave him 1,593 points and moved him past Phil Esposito (1,590) for 11th in League history. Ovechkin will go head-to-head with Penguins captain Sidney Crosby for the 72nd time in the NHL and third this season. The Capitals have points in six consecutive games (3-0-3). Center Evgeni Malkin (upper body) is expected to return for the Penguins (23-25-9), who trail the Red Wings by six points in the wild-card race.
Carolina Hurricanes at Toronto Maple Leafs (7 p.m. ET; CBC, SN1, SNO, SNP, NHLN, FDSNSO)
Hurricanes forward Mikko Rantanen and Maple Leafs wing Mitch Marner are back from 4 Nations. Toronto (33-20-2) trails the Florida Panthers by three points for first in the Atlantic Division with Marner projected for 106 points in 81 games and his first 100-point season in the NHL. Carolina (33-19-4) is second in the Metropolitan Division, two points ahead of the third-place New Jersey Devils, and 3-3-1 since Rantanen was acquired in a three-team trade with the Colorado Avalanche and Chicago Blackhawks on Jan. 24.
Vancouver Canucks at Vegas Golden Knights (10 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, CITY, SN, CBC)
The Pacific Division rivalry resumes with the Canucks (26-18-11), winners of three in a row and six of eight (6-1-1) despite an undisclosed injury to defenseman Quinn Hughes that prevented their captain from playing for the U.S. at the 4 Nations. Goalie Thatcher Demko (lower body) is week to week and not on Vancouver's five-game road trip that begins at T-Mobile Arena after leaving a 2-1 victory against the Maple Leafs on Feb. 8. Kevin Lankinen made 21 saves in Finland's 4-3 overtime win against Sweden at the 4 Nations on Saturday, none bigger than stopping Adrian Kempe 11 seconds before Mikael Granlund scored 1:49 into OT. Jack Eichel's 69 points lead the Golden Knights (33-17-6). The U.S.-born center has 50 assists for the second time in his 10 NHL seasons and had four in four games at the 4 Nations.
SUNDAY
Edmonton Oilers at Washington Capitals (1 p.m. ET; MAX, truTV, TNT, SN, TVAS)
In the first of an "NHL on TNT" doubleheader that will celebrate Hockey Day in America, Ovechkin and Oilers captain Connor McDavid face off for the first time this season and 14th in the NHL. McDavid had five points (three goals, two assists) for Canada in the 4 Nations, including the overtime goal to defeat the U.S. in the championship Thursday, and is four assists from 700 since being the No. 1 pick in the 2015 NHL Draft. The reigning Western Conference champion Oilers (34-17-4) are tied with the Golden Knights for first in the Pacific. Center Leon Draisaitl leads the NHL with 40 goals and his 83 points are second to Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon (87). Draisaitl takes a three-game goal streak (four goals) and six-game point streak (nine points; five goals, four assists) into Capital One Arena.
New York Rangers at Pittsburgh Penguins (3:30 p.m. ET; MAX, truTV, TNT, SN, TVAS)
The Rangers (27-24-4) hope the trade for J.T. Miller, a resurgent Mika Zibanejad and a healthy Igor Shesterkin can help them ascend in the wild-card race. Zibanejad, a center, played for Sweden and entered the break with eight points (two goals, six assists) in five games since Miller, also a center, was acquired from the Canucks on Jan. 31. Shesterkin is expected to play this weekend following an upper-body injury the goalie apparently sustained in a 3-2 loss to the Penguins on Feb. 7, when Crosby (upper body) missed his first regular-season game since April 7, 2022, before returning to captain Canada. Pittsburgh defenseman Erik Karlsson has six points (two goals, four assists) during a five-game point streak. He had three points (one goal, two assists) and was plus-2 in three games for Sweden.
New Jersey Devils at Nashville Predators (6 p.m. ET; FDSNSO, NHLN, MSG)
The Devils (31-20-6) return U.S. forward Jack Hughes and Sweden forward Jesper Bratt from the 4 Nations. Hughes extended his road point streak to nine games (seven goals, seven assists) during a 4-0 win at the Montreal Canadiens on Feb. 8 to tie Nico Hischier's (2023-24) and Taylor Hall's (2017-18) team record for longest in a season, while Bratt stretched his overall run to eight (12 points; two goals, 10 assists), a team-best this season dating to Jan. 22. Hischier, the Devils captain, could play against the Dallas Stars at Prudential Center on Saturday after missing six games with an oblique injury. The Predators (19-28-7) lost six in a row before defeating the Buffalo Sabres 6-4 on Feb. 8 and are 18 points out of the Western wild-card race.
MONDAY
San Jose Sharks at Winnipeg Jets (7:30 p.m. ET; TVAS, Prime, NBCSCA, NHLN)
The Jets (39-14-3) are on an eight-game winning streak, matching their 8-0-0 start to the season. Connor Hellebuyck is arguably the favorite for the Vezina Trophy, voted as best goalie in the NHL with his League-leading 34 wins, 2.06 goals-against average, .925 save percentage and six shutouts in 43 games. He made 69 saves on 74 shots for the United States to finish with a 1.59 goals-against average and .932 save percentage at the 4 Nations and won his 176th NHL game on home ice, 4-3 against the New York Islanders on Feb. 7, to tie Mike Richter for the fifth most by a U.S.-born goalie. Though the Sharks (15-35-7) have lost four in a row (0-3-1) and are 1-9-1 in their past 11, Macklin Celebrini is a top contender for the Calder Trophy, voted as NHL rookie of the year. The 18-year-old center got his 40th point (17 goals, 23 assists) in his 45th game, the quickest in Sharks history by a first-year player. His 17 goals are second in the NHL among those age 21 or younger to Utah Hockey Club forward Dylan Guenther (20).
