
The 4-Nations Face-Off is about to begin and lines appear to be set for the first game for three of the four teams. The only team that hasn't had a normal and full practice is Team Finland as there were just 11 players on the ice.
Given the talent on the team, we can make a general assumption of what the lines are going to be. With the help of the NHL and others, there is a pretty good idea of what we are going to see from Finland.
Teuvo Teravainen is the only Chicago Blackhawks player to make one of the 4 Nations Face-Off rosters and he is representing Finland. There is a very good chance that he will skate in the top-6 as he has been projected to be on a line with Aleksander Barkov and Patrik Laine or with Sebastian Aho and Laine. Either way, Teravainen is going to be playing with better talent than he has in Chicago this season and it could boost his game upon the NHL regular season resuming.
Teravainen signed with the Blackhawks after spending many years with the Carolina Hurricanes on the same team as Aho, so the two could find chemistry again. Putting these two together makes sense, but there are a few other familiar combos that could be made in Finland's top-6 like Mikko Rantanen and Aho or Rantanen and Artturi Lehkonen as well.
I would like to see Teravainen link up with Aho once again for Team Finland, and if Rantanen is on the other wing, that could be very interesting. Expect Teravainen, someone proficient in producing offensively and a strong defensive player, to play on the second power-play unit as well as kill penalties for Finland at the tournament.
Despite the Blackhawks' struggles this season, especially scoring for most part, Teravainen has 12 goals and 40 points in 55 games. Ultimately, he is on pace for what should have been expected of him coming into Chicago. The veteran has scored 60 points four times in his career. He is on pace for exactly 60 this season on the 31st ranked team.
While Teravainen already has the experience from succeeding in the NHL for this long, the Blackhawks can only hope that he brings a little extra back from the 4 Nations Face-Off that positively impacts the rest of the team, especially the young players in Chicago.
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