Questions ahead of Canada, U.S. 4 Nations Face-Off roster reveals

Who else is going to the 4 Nations Face-off for Canada and the United States?

It's almost time for the question to be answered.

The rosters for the tournament that will be held from Feb. 12-20 in Montreal and Boston, the first best-on-best tournament since the World Cup of Hockey 2016 in Toronto, have been submitted to the NHL and NHL Players' Association, and they will be revealed Wednesday.

Players selected to represent Finland and Sweden were announced Wednesday afternoon.

At 6:30 p.m. ET, the balance of rosters for Canada and the United States will be announced during live pregame shows on Sportsnet and TNT leading into doubleheaders on each network.

Each country announced the first six players to its roster in June. The anticipation for the reveal of the rest of each team is being felt across the NHL.

"Whether you get announced early or not it's still fun to see what type of team we'll have, who is going to be on it," said Mika Zibanejad, the New York Rangers center who was one of the first six selected for Sweden. "I know it's not easy for the head coach and the staff to decide who is on it. It'll be exciting."

Here are questions related to the four rosters that will be coming out Wednesday:

Who are Canada's goalies going to be?

When NHL.com released its projected roster for Canada on Nov. 4, the three goalies were Jordan Binnington of the St. Louis Blues, Sam Montembeault of the Montreal Canadiens and Stuart Skinner of the Edmonton Oilers.

In the next and final projected roster that came out on Nov. 26, the selections were Logan Thompson of the Washington Capitals, Adin Hill of the Vegas Golden Knights and Cam Talbot of the Detroit Red Wings.

Thompson is 10-1-1 with a 2.56 goals-against average and .911 save percentage. Hill, who won the Stanley Cup as the Golden Knights' starter in 2023, is 10-4-2 with a 2.85 GAA and .894 save percentage.

But now Talbot is injured, having sustained a lower-body injury in Detroit's 5-4 overtime loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday. Does that change his status? Was he a favorite to make it because he's 6-5-2 with a 2.73 GAA and .915 save percentage in 15 games this season?

It's possible, albeit unlikely, Canada could go with two of the aforementioned goalies and gets Marc-Andre Fleury of the Minnesota Wild to be the third goalie with the theory that in his last NHL season his international experience and personality could help the other goalies.

Either way, choosing Canada's three goalies had to have been a bit of a crapshoot for the management group led by Doug Armstrong of the Blues.

Yes or no to Bedard?

Connor Bedard is on NHL.com's projected Canadian roster, but the Chicago Blackhawks second-year center is also tied for 27th among Canadian forwards in scoring this season with 19 points (five goals, 14 assists) in 25 games. He is tied for 36th in points per game (0.76).

That in theory could put Bedard on the bubble for Canada's roster when figuring there are only as many as eight spots available with Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche, Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers, Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Brad Marchand of the Boston Bruins and Brayden Point of the Tampa Bay Lightning already on the team.

The likelihood is that Bedard will make it for a number of reasons, arguably No. 1 being that he is a huge part of the future of the Canadian national team and getting him best-on-best experience as a 19-year-old is important.

Armstrong and Canada's management team also has to factor in that Bedard's role with the Blackhawks as the No. 1 center facing top matchups every game will not be the same as it will be in the 4 Nations Face-Off, where he can be insulated by the likes of Crosby, McDavid, MacKinnon, Point and Marchand.

Expect Bedard to make it.

Is Miller a viable option for the United States?

J.T. Miller is currently on a leave of absence from the Vancouver Canucks for personal reasons. It's not known when, or if, Miller will return this season.

Miller, a forward, has been on the radar for the U.S. team in the 4 Nations Face-Off, if not a lock, but his current status at the very least puts his spot in jeopardy.

Miller, who has 16 points (six goals, 10 assists) in 17 games this season, was still on the NHL.com final projected United States' roster that came out Monday, but also considered a wild card because he's on his leave of absence.

There's no doubt that U.S. general manager Bill Guerin will have done his due diligence on Miller before submitting the roster to the NHL and NHLPA.

If Miller is named to the team, it would stand to reason that Guerin and the U.S. management and coaching staffs have been assured that he will be back in the NHL before the tournament. If he's not, the U.S. might have been told he won't be.

Does Kreider make the U.S. roster for his unique skill set?

Chris Kreider of the New York Rangers is not one of the United States' top threats at even strength, but he is one of the most dangerous net-front players on the power play in the NHL and a potential breakaway waiting to happen on the penalty kill.

Could that be enough to get him on the team even with a subpar start to the season with 10 goals and no assists in 21 games?

Kreider is third in the NHL with 56 power-play goals since the start of the 2021-22 season, including four this season. His 11 short-handed goals, two coming this season, is first in the NHL since 2021-22.

At the very least, Kreider's ability on special teams should have him squarely on the bubble, especially with Miller's uncertainty.

What about these other Rangers on the bubble?

Rangers forwards Vincent Trocheck (United States) andAlexis Lafreniere (Canada) are hopeful of making their respective teams.

If Trocheck makes it, it would be as a bottom-six center who kills penalties, can play on the man-advantage when needed, handles hard matchups and wins face-offs in all three zones. But does the U.S. have enough of those players when you also factor in that Tage Thompson of the Buffalo Sabres, Dylan Larkin of the Detroit Red Wings and Brock Nelson of the New York Islanders are similar in those areas?

Trocheck didn't make NHL.com's final projected U.S. roster.

Lafreniere played his way into the Canadian conversation last season, when he broke out with 57 points (28 goals, 29 assists) in 82 games, 0.70 points per game. His production has stayed consistent this season with 17 points (eight goals, nine assists), 0.70 points per game.

He's done it mostly without much power play time being on the Rangers' second unit.

Lafreniere, though, like Trocheck, was not on NHL.com's final projected Canada roster.

Is Swayman still a lock as a U.S. goalie?

Before the season, the U.S. goalies seemed like the easiest selections: Connor Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets, Jake Oettinger of the Dallas Stars and Jeremy Swayman of the Boston Bruins. Thatcher Demko of the Canucks would have been right there too if not for a knee injury that has kept him out all season.

Well, Swayman missed training camp as a restricted free agent. He finally signed an eight-year contract ($8.25 million average annual value) Oct. 6, but it's been a rocky start to the season for the Bruins goalie, who is 7-9-2 with a 3.09 GAA and .892 save percentage.

Does that open the door for someone like the Toronto Maple Leafs' Anthony Stolarz, who is 8-4-2 with a 2.23 GAA and .924 save percentage, or the Seattle Kraken's Joey Daccord, who is 10-6-1 with a 2.56 GAA and .912 save percentage?

The answer depends on philosophy because Swayman is also a 2026 Olympic hopeful for the United States, whereas it's not clear if the same can be said for Stolarz and Daccord, or anyone else other than Hellebuyck and Oettinger.

If Swayman goes as the third goalie behind Hellebuyck and Oettinger, he may not play a minute at the 4 Nations Face-Off but will get a close-up look at best-on-best international hockey, which should benefit him in the long run.

Eleven years later, do these three Americans still belong in a best-on-best tournament?

Patrick Kane of the Detroit Red Wings, John Carlson of the Washington Capitals and Ryan McDonagh of the Tampa Bay Lightning were all impact players for the United States at the 2014 Sochi Olympics.

They're candidates to be on the U.S. roster for the 4 Nations too. In fact, all three would be candidates to wear a letter, potentially the "C" for captain, if they make the team. But they're far from locks, especially when the U.S. depth chart has grown in the 11 years since Sochi.

Kane could be squeezed out by the likes of Cole Caufield, Clayton Keller or Jason Robertson if the U.S. is looking for playmakers of his ilk.

Carlson and McDonagh are in a tough spot because there are only four defense spots available for the U.S. with Quinn Hughes of the Canucks, Adam Fox of the Rangers and Charlie McAvoy of the Bruins already named.

Zach Werenski of the Columbus Blue Jackets has likely played his way on with his performance this season. Jaccob Slavin of the Carolina Hurricanes should be there for his overall game, specifically his shutdown ability. Noah Hanifin of the Vegas Golden Knights, Brock Faber of the Minnesota Wild, Jake Sanderson of the Ottawa Senators are all options too.

How important is player familiarity in such a short tournament in the middle of the season?

The value of this will be shown in the four rosters, but it has to be a big consideration since there will be very little preparation time for the 4 Nations Face-Off. The teams will have two days to prepare, Feb. 10 and 11, before the first game of the tournament is played Feb. 12.

Brady Tkachuk of the Ottawa Senators is expected to make the U.S. team, joining brother Matthew Tkachuk of the Florida Panthers. Matthew is already on the team.

It's possible one of Canada's forward lines will be Crosby with MacKinnon and Marchand since they're all from Nova Scotia and they skate together in the summer.

Canada could pick both Alex Pietrangelo and Shea Theodore. They form the first defense pair for the Golden Knights. Similarly, it wouldn't be shocking if Devon Toews from the Avalanche makes Canada's roster to play with Colorado teammate Cale Makar, who is already on the roster.