Why The NHL Shouldn't Make The 4 Nations Face-Off An Annual Event

Miami Herald

a day ago

By Jack Klinck, The Hockey News intern
The success of the 4 Nations Face-Off instead of the NHL All-Star Game had some fans asking, "Why not do this every year?" With all-star games and skills competitions becoming less and less popular across all sports, leagues are constantly looking at ways to squeeze excitement out of these low-effort showings.
It seems like the NHL is the first league to crack the code. Want to make all-star weekends more exciting? Scrap them all together. Instead of a breakaway challenge, slam dunk competition or dodgeball game, let players put on their country's colors and play for something they actually want to win.
With the excitement of the 4 Nations, it's hard to imagine a return to another NHL All-Star Game in the coming years. With NHL players participating in the Olympics in 2026, fans will get another taste of best-on-best, but after that, it's likely back to the NHL's old all-star ways.
But maybe that's a good thing. Connor McDavid seems to think so. He said that best-on-best hockey every two years is enough because of the physical toll it takes on the players.
As much fun as the 4 Nations Face-Off has been, Connor, we agree.
While playing high-intensity playoff-style hockey instead of having a week-long vacation takes a toll on the players, having international best-on-best hockey every year would diminish the meaning of these tournaments and dilute the quality of play.
Part of what has made this tournament so exciting was that it was our first taste of men's international best-on-best hockey since the World Cup of Hockey in 2016. It's the rarity that makes it special.
For the first time in their careers, the best players in the world could play for their country at the highest level. The NHL caught magic in a bottle with the 4 Nations Face-Off, but it's a magic they can only capture once. Now it's time to tighten the lid and put that bottle back on the shelf.
Imagine if every best-on-best tournament ended with a "there's always next year" mentality. Not just that, but a "there's always every year" mentality. The fans would be less interested, and the players would treat it as less of a priority.
Take the IIHF's World Championship for example. A tournament of the top hockey countries in the world that sees many NHL players prioritize healing ailments and having a longer off-season over competing for their country.
Although the tournament happens in May and usually overlaps with the second round of the NHL playoffs, players such as Connor Bedard, Cale Makar and Cole Caufield were available by that time last season. Not one of them went.
The tournament is popular in Europe and has seen countries that likely wouldn't medal in true best-on-best competition like Switzerland, Latvia and Germany leave with some hardware. The worlds also give top prospects a chance to play against high-level professional competition.
While the World Championship is great for the game, it should serve as a cautionary tale for the NHL: best-on-best hockey shouldn't be where players go to work on their game or get healthy. It should be the best players in the world playing their best hockey.
With NHL Olympic participation in 2026 and the return of the World Cup of Hockey in 2028, we will see international best-on-best hockey at least every two years. And that should be enough. The 4 Nations Face-Off seems like the odd man out.
While the NHL seemed to have fixed the All-Star Game this year, it is only a one-time fix. There will still be a February opening in the schedule every second season that the NHL will have to fill. But the league will need to flex its creative muscles as more international hockey is not the way to go.
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