Barkov says 'it's game on' for Finland in 4 Nations opener against U.S.

MONTREAL -- Aleksander Barkov got a taste of the atmosphere at the 4 Nations Face-off when he was on the ice as Finland’s captain for the opening ceremony prior to Canada’s 4-3 overtime victory against Sweden on Wednesday.

It got Barkov even more excited to play in Finland's tournament opener against the United States at Bell Centre on Thursday (8 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, SN, TVAS).

“It’ll be a lot of fun,” Barkov said after Finland’s morning skate Thursday. “Yesterday was an amazing atmosphere, got to experience an amazing moment there on the ice with them obviously welcoming Mario Lemieux back in the building. It was one of the coolest moments I’ve ever been part of.”

Barkov called it “a big honor” to meet Lemieux, a Montreal native who won the Stanley Cup with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1991 and 1992 and led Canada to a gold medal in the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics and first-place finishes at the 1987 Canada Cup and the 2004 World Cup of Hockey.

Barkov knows the pride of a player representing his country in international play, including at the IIHF World Junior Championships in 2012 and 2013, the 2014 Sochi Olympics, the IIHF World Championship in 2015 and 2016, and the World Cup of Hockey 2016.

Barkov said he believes that's something every player from Finland will take on the ice with them Thursday.

“I think we know when you put the Finnish jersey on, it’s game on,” Barkov said. “Everyone expects the best out of you and it’s a big honor and big pride to represent your own country.

"Especially Team Finland, we respect that a lot to be able to get this chance and to play for Team Finland and every single guy knows it. Every single guy went through the junior system where you kind of figure out how big of an honor and pride it is to represent your own country.

“So every guy knows it and every single guy has at some point in their life played for Team Finland, so it’s great."

As Finland’s captain, Barkov has an additional responsibility, but the 29-year-old center already has experience as a captain in big moments, including helping the Florida Panthers win the Stanley Cup for the first time last season, when he led the Panthers with 22 points (eight goals, 14 games) in 24 games during the postseason.

In the process, he became the first captain from Finland to win the Cup.

“It means a lot,” Barkov said. “I never thought about it like, ‘I want to be the first Finnish captain to win.’ I just tried to do my job, and it happened to be me. So I’m really happy about that.”

Finland forward Anton Lundell, also Barkov’s teammate with Florida, said Barkov's demeanor as a leader and drive to win made him the perfect choice to be Finland's captain.

“He’s so humble. He works hard,” Lundell said. “He wants to become better every day and I think that really affects everybody around him when your captain is never happy where he is.

"He wants to become better. He wants the team to play better. He pushes everybody around him to become better as well. I think that’s one thing why he’s been having a lot of success and why the team around him is playing well as well.”

Barkov said his experience as Panthers captain will help guide him in leading Finland in this tournament.

“A little bit, of course,” he said. “There (in the NHL), you’re six, seven seasons as a captain and it’s kind of your everyday thing. Here it’s a short tournament, and, obviously, there are guys that you maybe have not played with so much. So it’s a little different. But at the end of the day, I don’t have to be anything else than I am right now. So just be myself and do my thing and every other guy in the room, the same thing.

“You don’t need to be anything else. Just be the best version of yourself.”