Which Devils Players Will Be at 4 Nations Face-Off

NHL players will vie for spots at the 4 Nations Face-Off in February 2025. Which New Jersey Devils players have a chance of participating?

The NHL recently announced the schedule and venues for the upcoming 4-Nations Face-Off, which will take place in February 2025 at the Bell Centre in Montreal and TD Garden in Boston. 

Players from Canada, Finland, Sweden, and the United States will participate in a mini-tournament for bragging rights ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy. 

As one of the premiere events on the NHL schedule in 2024-25, there will be plenty of buzz about which superstars their home countries will select. 

Considering the New Jersey Devils have a handful of young skaters worthy of playing at the 4-Nations Face-Off and the Olympics, who are the front runners for a spot?

Like most of the Devils' lineup, Jack Hughes had a down year in 2023-24, collecting just 74 points in 62 games. This is a 25-point drop in production from his best season in 2022-23 when he netted 43 goals and 99 points.

The native of Orlando, FL, is a lock to make the United States roster as one of the country's best players. 

Since debuting in 2019, Hughes has played 306 games with 281 points, 114 goals, and 167 assists, ranking 17th among American-born players. 

Moreover, Hughes ranks in the top 10 in all three categories amongst centers and will see his ranking rise in 2024-25 in this group now that Joe Pavelski has retired. 

Even though the United States is stacked at the center position, General Manager Bill Guerin would consider Hughes' addition to the team a no-brainer. 

Jesper Bratt is one of the top forwards from Sweden who is skating in the NHL today. After failing to surpass 35 points for four seasons, he had a breakout campaign in 2021-22 with 73 points and hasn't looked back.

Bratt has averaged 28 goals and 76 points for the past three seasons while leading the Devils in scoring in 2022 and 2024.

Thanks to those performances, General Manager Tom Fitzgerald inked the native of Stockholm, Sweden, to an eight-year extension worth $63 million in June 2023.

Bratt has collected the fourth most points (229) among Swedish forwards in the past three years, behind William Nylander, Elias Pettersson, and Mika Zibanejad. 

Regarding left-wingers, he's earned the top spot in assists and points, trailing only Filip Forsberg in goals 109 to 85.

Considering that Sweden can not match the depth of the Canadian and American rosters, Bratt is almost guaranteed a spot based on recent performances and his history of serving his home country internationally. 

Luke Hughes is just 20 and has an outsider's chance of getting called up for the United States at the 4-National Face-Off. 

Despite finishing sixth in scoring among defenders from his home country and earning a Calder Trophy nomination, there's a log jam of talented defensemen ahead of him on the chart.

Names like Quinn Hughes, Adam Fox, John Carlson, Brock Faber, and Charlie McAvoy are almost locks to fill out the lineup, meaning Luke would need a great first half in 2024-25 to have a chance.

Of course, some veterans could have slumps or get injured, opening up spots for players on the outside. However, the odds of the three Hughes brothers participating in the tournament are slim.