United States Quarter-Century Teams selected by NHL.com during 4 Nations Face-Off

The 4 Nations Face-Off is currently taking place in Montreal and Boston until Feb. 20. It is a best-on-best tournament with teams from Canada, Finland, Sweden and the United States featuring NHL players only.

To get fans ready for the 4 Nations Face-Off and to help celebrate the past quarter-century, NHL.com will be naming Quarter-Century Teams for each of the four nations.

Today, we present the First and Second Quarter-Century Teams for the United States, as selected by U.S.-based NHL.com staff writers Bill Douglas, Nicholas J. Cotsonika and Dan Rosen. The players, listed in alphabetical order, were judged based on their NHL stats and international contributions from Jan. 1, 2000, to Dec. 31, 2024.

FIRST TEAM

Forwards

Patrick Kane

Auston Matthews

Joe Pavelski

Defensemen

Adam Fox

Quinn Hughes

Goalie

Jonathan Quick

Forwards: Kane led all U.S. players in goals (478), assists (823), points (1,301), power-play points (424) and was second in game-winning goals (78) and power-play goals (130) in 1,262 games, sixth among U.S. players in the timeframe. Among all NHL players, he was eighth in goals, fourth in assists and fifth in points. He helped the Chicago Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup three times (2010, 2013, 2015) and won the Art Ross Trophy as NHL scoring champion in 2015-16, the same year he won the Hart Trophy, voted as NHL MVP, and Ted Lindsay Award as MVP, voted by the NHL Players' Association. The 2013 Conn Smythe Trophy winner as Stanley Cup Playoffs MVP scored the Cup-clinching goal that year and was named one of the 100 Greatest Players in NHL history at the League's Centennial celebration in 2017. Despite only playing nine seasons, Matthews ranked fifth among U.S. players in goals (379) in the past 25 years, and 14th with 672 points in 586 games. The Toronto Maple Leafs captain leads the NHL in goals (388) since entering the League in the 2016-17 season and has not scored fewer than 34 goals in any of his eight previous NHL seasons. He won the Rocket Richard Trophy three times (2020-21, 2021-22, 2023-24) as the NHL leading goal scorer, and the Ted Lindsay Award and Hart Trophy in 2021-22. Pavelski, who retired following the 2023-24 season with the Dallas Stars, was second in goals (476) and points (1,068) and third in games (1,332) and assists (592) in the first quarter century. He topped all U.S. players in power-play goals (176) and was third in game-winning goals (75). Pavelski also came up clutch in the playoffs with 143 points (74 goals, 69 assists) and 18 game-winners in 201 playoff games, ranking second all-time among U.S. players in postseason goals and fourth in points.

Defensemen: Since entering the NHL in 2019-20 until the end of the quarter-century, Fox had 336 points (54 goals, 282 assists) in 393 games with the New York Rangers, the second-most points among U.S. defensemen behind Hughes (372). Fox was also a plus-110 with 142 power-play points. He has at least 42 points in each season, including 72 or more three times. Fox won the Norris Trophy, voted as the NHL's top defenseman in 2020-21, when he had 47 points in 55 games and has been a Norris top-five finalist each of the past four seasons. Hughes, who has 51 goals and 321 assists in the span, leads U.S. defensemen with 163 power-play points and won the Norris last season when he had 92 points (17 goals, 75 assists) in 82 games for the Vancouver Canucks. He was the third-fastest defenseman in NHL history to reach 300 assists behind Hall of Famers Bobby Orr and Brian Leetch.

Goalie: Quick leads U.S.-born goalies all-time with 401 NHL wins. His 398 wins in the timeframe were sixth among all goalies and his 62 shutouts were fifth. He also had a 2.48 goals-against average and .911 save percentage in that span, won at least 33 games six times, and backstopped the Los Angeles Kings to the Stanley Cup in 2012 and 2014 and was on the Vegas Golden Knights when they won the championship in 2023. A two-time Jennings Trophy winner for allowing the fewest goals in the NHL (2013-14, 2017-18), Quick won the Conn Smythe in 2012 when he was 16-4 with a 1.41 GAA, .946 save percentage and three shutouts during the postseason.

SECOND TEAM

Forwards

Dustin Brown

Johnny Gaudreau

Matthew Tkachuk

Defensemen

John Carlson

Ryan Suter

Goalie

Tim Thomas

Forwards: Brown, who spent his entire career with the Kings, played 1,296 games in the timeframe, fourth-most among U.S. players. He had 712 points (325 goals, 387 assists), ranking seventh in goals and ninth in points among U.S. players. Brown won the Cup twice with the Kings, including when he had 20 points (eight goals, 12 assists) in 20 games to captain them to their first championship in 2012. Gaudreau was seventh among United States players with 743 points (243 goals, 500 assists) in 763 games and 213 power-play points. He had eight seasons with at least 60 points, including an NHL career-high 115 points (40 goals, 75 assists) and a plus-64 rating with the Calgary Flames in 2021-22. He, along with his brother, Matthew, died Aug. 29, 2024, when they were struck by an alleged drunk driver who was charged with two counts of death by auto, while riding bicycles near their home in Salem County, New Jersey. Tkachuk, who was 20th among U.S. players in the first quarter century in points (614) despite playing in less than nine seasons in the timeframe, had 231 goals and 383 assists and was almost a point-per game player in 623 games. He was plus-128 with 200 power-play points in the span and helped the Florida Panthers reach the Cup Final two straight seasons, including winning the Cup last season. Tkachuk has 56 points in 56 playoff games over the past three seasons and tied for the team lead with 22 (six goals, 16 assists) in 24 playoff games last season.

Defensemen: Carlson led U.S. defensemen in points (698) in the quarter-century and was second in goals (154) and assists (544) in 1,046 games (seventh). His 259 power-play points were second and his 32 game-winning goals third. Carlson had at least 50 points six times and helped the Washington Capitals win the Stanley Cup in 2018, when he had 20 points (five goals, 15 assists) in 24 games. Suter led U.S. defenseman in games played by far (1,483) and was first in assists (582) and second in points (688) behind Carlson. He had 106 goals and was plus-117 to go along with 254 power-play points (third), averaging 24:16 of ice time per game (fourth).

Goalie: Thomas was 214-145-49 with a 2.52 GAA, .920 save percentage and 31 shutouts in 426 games in the timeframe, winning the Vezina Trophy twice (2008-09, 2010-11) and the Jennings Trophy once (2008-09). He went 16-9 with a 1.98 GAA, .940 save percentage and four shutouts in 25 games winning the Conn Smythe Trophy and helping the Boston Bruins win the Stanley Cup in 2011.