Every hockey fan is currently all in on the Stanley Cup finals. It doesn’t matter what team you support – or where you live – the Stanley Cup finals is the pinnacle of the sport and probably the one trophy every player wants to win. This year has an added edge with the Edmonton Oilers trying to end 32 years of hurt and bring a championship back to Canada.
There is no doubt that everyone looks forward to this time of year. But this NHL season had a somewhat unexpected hit halfway through the season. Instead of the annual All-Star game, the people in charge of hockey in North America decided to stage a one-off four-nation tournament featuring only NHL players – and it was an incredible success.
Hockey fans might now be taking a look at all the best NHL betting sites to find the best markets for the finals. But back in February, all eyes were on the Four Nations Face-Off. Why was the event such a success? And can we look forward to more of the same in the future?
All-Star Fatigue
The All-Star game has been a staple for all of the major sports leagues in the US for decades. It always seemed like an excellent way to watch the best athletes performing together instead of on their own teams and was treated as a special event halfway through the respective regular seasons.
But the reality is that All-Star games have been on the wane for a long time now. The players don’t seem up for it and the fans regard it as an interruption to the regular season. Something had to be done and it seems like the best thing the NHL did to make the All-Star game better was to get rid of it altogether.
National Pride
The traditional “Big Four” sports in the US (and Canada) have never really gotten to enjoy the increased excitement provided by international competition. Most of the major leagues proclaim their champions, “World Champions”, as these are the only two countries where the games really matter.
Hockey is a little different as we have always had a degree of international competition, thanks to the Olympics. The Four Nations Face-Off gave us the intense national competition of the Winter Olympics in a more condensed package. Suddenly, club loyalty went out of the window as the fans – and players – rallied around the national flag.
Canada vs. USA
The Four Nations Face-Off was so good because it brought together NHL players from the US, Canada, Sweden, and Finland in a different way than we are used to seeing them. It might have included German and Russian players instead but there are not enough of the former and Russia is banned by the IIHF.
As good as it was to watch Swedish and Finnish players, the real attraction was the match-up between the US and Canada. This would be a great meeting at the best of times but the ongoing political situation between the two countries added even more spice to the games. Having a final championship game between the two seemed like fate.
TV Ratings
One of the major reasons for trying to do something different instead of the usual All-Star game was that the fans were just not as interested any more. TV ratings for the game have plummeted in recent years and it was almost seen as a waste of time for the players, teams, and fans.
Although some people initially had misgivings about the prospect of the Four Nations Face-Off, the competition caught on immediately. Even the round-robin games attracted more than double the TV audience that tuned into the 2016 World Cup. And the ratings for the final were only beaten by actual Stanley Cup finals games.
Winter Olympics Break
So, if the Four Nations Face-Off was so popular, the NHL will be ditching the All-Star game in favor of an annual event, right? Wrong. As much as the league would probably love to bring the tournament back for another year in 2026, the Winter Olympics takes precedence and will be the main event hallway through the next regular season.
The next World Cup comes along in 2028, so there may be an opportunity to bring back some kind of tournament in 2027 but it does seem as if the All-Star Weekend has had its day. After the success of this year’s competition, the fans will not want to go back to what is a meaningless game. Hockey has been forever changed.
Other Sports
The success of the Four Nations Face-Off doesn’t have to be judged by the reaction of hockey fans. The way that other major leagues have responded to the event tells you everything you need to know. All-Star games in any sport have meant less to fans over the years and everyone is up for a change.
One of the best examples of this way of thinking is with basketball. The NBA has been trying for years to liven up its own All-Star Weekend, getting the top players to pick their own rosters and teams among a host of other activities. But even LeBron James has said that the Four Nations Face-Off was the way to go. Don’t be surprised if we see an NBA version soon.
