Canada's World Cup of Hockey-winning squad in 2016 and 4 Nations Face-Off roster shows differences in team building and philosophy, but it's a new era, says Adam Proteau.
The Team Canada roster at the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off is notably different from the Canadian team at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, and not just because of the specific players.
Below, we will compare and contrast Team Canada's 2025 squad and the World Cup-champion 2016 roster. There are some striking similarities between the two teams, but there are also some major differences in team-building philosophy.
Forwards
There’s been incredible turnover from the 2016 Canadian squad to the 2025 Canadian team: only Sidney Crosby and Brad Marchand made both teams.
Veterans including Logan Couture, Corey Perry, Ryan O'Reilly, Steven Stamkos, John Tavares, Matt Duchene and Claude Giroux were 2016 players for Canada who didn’t make the cut for the 4 Nations Face-Off.
The 2016 World Cup squad was truly a stockpile of pure talent on offense. Rather than doing that again, the 4 Nations Face-Off squad features role players, including Anthony Cirelli, Brandon Hagel and Travis Konecny. Canadian 4 Nations Face-Off GM Don Sweeney clearly values players who will work well with coach Jon Cooper in a short tournament and excel on the penalty kill in the depth roles.
The 4 Nations Face-Off Canadian team marks a new era for Canada, and you didn't have to be a superstar to make the team up front.
Defense
Only one defenseman – Stanley Cup winner Alex Pietrangelo – is on both Canadian teams. Similar to the forwards, Canada’s 4 Nations Face-Off squad left off longtime proven veteran defensemen including Drew Doughty and Brent Burns in favor of blueliners who fit a role and have something to prove: Travis Sanheim and Colton Parayko.
Otherwise, Father Time influenced the difference in Canada’s 2016 team and the 4 Nations Face-Off. World Cup veterans Jay Bouwmeester, Jake Muzzin and Shea Weber are not playing anymore, and greybeard D-man Marc-Edouard Vlasic hasn't played this season.
Those developments opened the door for relative youngsters Devon Toews, Shea Theodore, Josh Morrissey, Sanheim, Parayko and Cale Makar.
All in all, Canada will have a fast, smart blueline in the 4 Nations Face-Off, but if they do struggle and Canada doesn’t win the tournament, there will be plenty of second-guessing as far as the defense goes. There were many different options for Sweeney, and his choices in every area will be under the microscope whether they win or lose.
Goalies
Canada's goaltending in 2016 is markedly better than the group Canada will be relying on at the 4 Nations Face-Off.
To wit: Corey Crawford and Braden Holtby wound up as Stanley Cup winners – although Holtby wasn’t a Cup champion at the time of the 2016 World Cup – and of course, Carey Price was a superstar and could be an eventual Hockey Hall of Famer.
Contrast those three goalies with the 4 Nations Face-Off, and you’ll see a serious drop-off in achievements. Adin Hill and Jordan Binnington also are Cup winners, but they aren't as dominant as the 2016 netminders were. And Sam Montembeault is a distant third on the 4 Nations Face-Off goaltending team.
Canada’s strength in net in 2016 has become their biggest question mark for the 4 Nations Face-Off. Hill or Binnington may step up and prove Sweeney right for putting them on the 2025 roster, but let’s be clear – if Montembeault is playing in this 4 Nations Face-Off, something has gone wrong for Canada.
There's lots of room for error with Canada's goaltending, and Sweeney's choices in this area will be under the microscope, win or lose.
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