For Utah defensemen Juuso Välimäki, Olli Määttä, 4 Nations Face-Off is matter of national pride

Finnish hockey fans probably remember the postgame interview that Utah defenseman Juuso Välimäki conducted right after the Czech Republic stunned Finland in the quarterfinals of the 2018 World Junior Championship at KeyBank Center in Buffalo. The Czechs tied the game with 2:26 remaining in regulation, and then won it in a shootout on goals from Kristian Reichel and Martin Nečas.

The loss came two years after Finland won gold at the U18 World Championship. The inability to replicate that success in his only two chances at the World Junior tournament (he also played in 2017) stung Välimäki to the core.

"If you watch, I'm crying my eyes out in front of the media because I was so disappointed that we didn't play better," Välimäki said, laughing. "For a long time, I couldn't even watch the World Juniors in the years after because I was so disappointed in ourselves when we didn't play well. I had a lot of sour feelings."

Plenty of players are passionate about hockey, but the depth of Välimäki's reaction to that loss is emblematic of how Finland feels about the game. Despite a modest population of about 5.6 million people — think Utah and Idaho combined — Finland has captured five gold medals, six silvers and seven bronzes at the World Junior Championship since 1980. It won gold at the 2022 Olympics in Beijing, and it owns two silvers and four bronze medals since 1988. As for the World Championship, Finland has won four gold medals, nine silvers and three bronzes since 1998.

National pride runs deep in Finland, and when it comes time to perform on the world stage, Suomi's players come together and rarely disappoint.

"I think part of it is that you grow up with all the players there, honestly," Utah defenseman Olli Määttä said. "It's such a small country so everybody knows everybody and it doesn't take a lot to get us working as a team.

"But I also think it's in the culture there. I don't think there's big egos in the locker room ever. In Finnish culture in general, you put the team ahead of yourself. You don't make a big deal out of yourself. So I think that's always been the strength of us."

Välimäki and Määttä will have the opportunity to show off that strength when they represent Finland at the 4 Nations Face-Off, which begins Wednesday at Centre Bell in Montréal with a game between Canada and Sweden, and continues on Thursday when Finland opens against the United States.

Välimäki and Määttä are the only Utah players competing in the event while their teammates get a well-earned break, but the lack of rest doesn't faze them.

"I'm actually excited to play and I think everybody is," Määttä said. "Yeah, you don't get the break, but at the same time, I think you can manage three games in 12 days or so and then, if you can make it to the finals, one more game."

The 4 Nations Face-Off was a joint creation by the NHL and the NHL Players' Association.

"It was hatched as a result of interest in hosting a World Cup of Hockey tournament, which originally was going to be in 2024 when we conceived of it, but by the time we conceived of it, we were already in late 2021, early 2022," NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said. "We ran into some immediate difficulties with European leagues and European clubs not wanting to release players for a World Cup of Hockey that was going to take place in the middle of the season.

"Then we had the Russian aggression in Ukraine right after the [2022] Olympics. So we transitioned to a tournament that we could control entirely, where we could ice four complete, deep, talented teams of NHL players to perform in this tournament, and we don't need help or permission from any other entity to let these players play."

Daly said the league was not able to field an entire team of NHL players from Czechia, Germany, Slovakia or other European hockey playing nations, and Russia is still banned from international events. That said, the 4 Nations Face-Off is something the hockey community may never see again.

The NHL, the NHLPA and the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) have already reached an agreement to allow players to compete in the 2026 Olympics in Milan, Italy. The league is also hopeful that the World Cup of Hockey will return and permanently occupy all of the other even-numbered years' slots where there are no Olympics.

"Our goal and intention is not to have to duplicate the 4 Nations Face-Off," Daly said. "We are fully committed to the World Cup of Hockey in 2028."

That novelty intrigues Välimäki.

"You know there's gonna be more World Cups, there's gonna be more Olympics, there's gonna be the World Championship and World Junior and whatnot, but this is something that probably will never happen again so it's something that you're gonna remember," he said. "You can always say, 'I was part of that. It only happened once, but I was there' so that's pretty cool."

Määttä and Välimäki have played a lot of international games for Finland over the years. Määttä has played in the U16 tournament, the U18 tournament, the World Junior Championship (three times) and the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia, which he labels his favorite of all of the international events.

"It's a big privilege to play for your country any time," he said. "But when I was growing up, I always watched the Olympics; every single one. That's always going to be the biggest one for me and I'm happy next year that there's another chance."

Määttä has also competed in three of the past four editions of the World Championship. A now familiar face was perched on the opposing bench.

"I went to the World Championships the last four years and we met them twice in the final," said Utah coach André Tourigny, who was an assistant coach for Canada in 2021 and 2022, and the head coach the past two seasons. "We beat them in overtime [in 2021]. They beat us in overtime [in 2022]. We beat them in regulation [in the medal round in 2023].

"They're never out of the game. They're consistent from the first minute to the last. Sometimes you get the momentum and you think 'OK, we've got them now' and then all the sudden they're grinding their way back. Everybody respects Finland because they work as a unit all the time and there's no egos on that team. I really like the way the Finns conduct themselves all the time with body language, attitude, effort, blocked shots, all of it. They play the right way."

Välimäki has never played in the World Championship but he has fond memories of winning gold at the 2016 U18 championship when he served as team captain.

"At my wedding a year and a half ago, two of my three best men were from that team," he said. "The best part about all those tournaments is the relationships that I've gotten. Finland does it all the way from U16 so a lot of those guys were there right from the start and they become your best friends."

Finland's 4 Nations roster has already been rocked by injuries on the back end. Dallas Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen, Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Jani Hakanpää and Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen will all miss the event with injuries. That could mean a lot of playing time for Määttä and Välimäki.

With increased playing time comes increased responsibility.

"I remember watching the older legends playing in these tournaments and how they carried themselves," Määttä said. "Now you're in their shoes and you know there's going to be people watching; little kids you can maybe inspire so I think that's part of it, too. People here [in the U.S.] don't really understand how big hockey is in Finland. It's a small country, but we've got a pretty crazy amount of hockey players over there."

Finland also possesses a character that is hard to translate into English or any other language. The Finnish term is Sisu. Roughly translated, it describes a person's determination and resilience in the face of adversity. It also captures Finland's deep-rooted sense of national pride that can be traced, in part, to its ability to maintain independence from Russia and the former Soviet Union through both world wars and the Cold War.

"I think sisu kind of describes how people think about everything in Finland," Välimäki said. "Every time there are these tournaments — Worlds, World Junior, Olympics, whatever — everyone is in on it; like the whole country. Everyone really cares.

"I'm super excited to play. I can only speak for myself, but you get the chance to represent your country on the biggest stage and I think hockey has really needed this. It's been a long time since we had a best-on-best tournament where the best players have played. I'm just honored to be part of it."