The Canes acquired forwards Mikko Rantanen and Taylor Hall in exchange for Martin Necas and Jack Drury. Team USA took to the ice this afternoon for their first team practice as they begin to gear up for the 4 Nations Face-Off. The tournament, which features America, Canada, Finland and Sweden, will start Feb. 12 and run through the 20th with one nation rising above as champions. Here's how the Americans were lined up: Kyle Connor (WPG) - Jack Eichel (VGK) - Matthew Tkachuk (FLA) Jake Guentzel (TBL) - Auston Matthews (TOR) - Jack Hughes (NJD) Brady Tkachuk (OTT) - J.T. Miller (NYR) - Matt Boldy (MIN) Brock Nelson (NYI) - Vincent Trocheck (NYR) - Dylan Larkin (DET) Chris Kreider (NYR) Jaccob Slavin (CAR) - Adam Fox (NYR) Zach Werenski (CBJ) - Charlie McAvoy (BOS) Noah Hanifin (VGK) - Brock Faber (MIN) Jake Sanderson (OTT) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- While these preliminary lines may not necessarily be what we see for Team USA's first game against Team Finland on Feb. 13, it still gives us a look into what team personnel thinks will work best. It also might give Carolina Hurricanes fans a glimpse into what could have been. Jaccob Slavin, 30, has been the top defenseman in Carolina for years now and has a flux of partners from Brett Pesce to Dougie Hamilton to Tony DeAngelo and now Brent Burns. He's usually formed great pairs with virtually every partner, but could you imagine how good a pairing of Slavin and Fox would be over a decade? Fox, 26, has been a 70+ point producer in three straight seasons and won the Norris in 2020-21. The New York native was acquired by the Canes in 2018 from the Calgary Flames as part of the Hamilton/Micheal Ferland package in exchange for Elias Lindholm/Hanifin. While the Hurricanes hoped they could convince him to sign with the organization, Fox only wanted to play for the Rangers and because NCAA players become free agents if they elect to spend their full four years in college, the team didn't have any other option other than to trade him. Reality is tough, but I'm not sure there would have been a pairing in the league as dominant as them if Fox had remained in Raleigh. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Image [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjEyMTgyOTk5MDg3NzIwMDY0/google-news.png] Stay updated with the most interesting Carolina Hurricanes stories, analysis, breaking news and more! Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News [https://news.google.com/publications/CAAqBwgKMK-q0gsw7sXpAw/sections/CAQqEAgAKgcICjCvqtILMO7F6QMwmeDfCA?hl=en-CA&gl=CA&ceid=CA%3Aen] to never miss a story.
