Feb 20, 2025; Boston, MA, USA; [Imagn Images direct customers only] Team Canada forward Brad Marchand (63) lifts the 4 Nations Face-Off trophy after winning against Team USA in overtime during the 4 Nations Face-Off ice hockey championship game at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images

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Connor McDavid’s OT goal hands Team Canada another best-on-best international win over Team USA

McDavid's OT winner hands Canada 4 Nations Face-Off title.

Team Canada claimed the first-ever 4 Nations Face-Off title, taking down Team USA 3-2 in overtime at TD Garden. Connor McDavid, the best hockey player on the planet, ended it at 8:18 in OT with a top-corner snipe off a pass from Mitchell Marner.

Team USA had the lead, the momentum, and a goaltender in Connor Hellebuyck who was holding it down. But when the game hit sudden death, Team Canada did what it always does.

For glory. #4Nations pic.twitter.com/XpPSgWFURe
— NHLPA (@NHLPA) February 21, 2025

Nathan MacKinnon, named tournament MVP, got Canada on the board first with a perfect wrister through traffic. Sam Bennett answered a Team USA go-ahead goal by Jake Sanderson with a snipe past Hellebuyck in the second period.

Jordan Binnington, the supposed weak link in Team Canada’s lineup, turned in a performance that made his doubters look dumb. He stopped 31 shots, including multiple desperation saves in overtime—one on Auston Matthews, another on Brady Tkachuk—that kept Canada alive.

This was another chapter in Canada’s dominance over the United States in international hockey. Since Team USA’s last best-on-best tournament win in 1996, Canada has stacked four straight, six of the last seven, and owns this rivalry when it matters.

Team Canada wins again, Team USA falls short again, and Connor McDavid finally gets his international moment

This was supposed to be Team USA’s time. They had the talent, the depth, and a group of stars in Auston Matthews, Brady Tkachuk, and Matthew Tkachuk who were built for this moment. They had already beaten Team Canada 3-1 in the group stage. And yet, when the game went to overtime, everybody knew how it would end.

This was Team Canada’s fourth consecutive win in a best-on-best international final:

2025 4 Nations Face-Off: Canada 🇨🇦 def. USA 🇺🇸
2016 World Cup of Hockey: Canada 🇨🇦 def. Team Europe 🇪🇺
2014 Olympics: Canada 🇨🇦 def. Sweden 🇸🇪
2010 Olympics: Canada 🇨🇦 def. USA 🇺🇸

Team USA, meanwhile, hasn’t won a major best-on-best tournament since the 1996 World Cup of Hockey. That was 29 years ago.

#4Nations

Recap: https://t.co/e0vCp6fM3A pic.twitter.com/cmffkvnEu5
— USA Hockey (@usahockey) February 21, 2025

It wasn’t for lack of effort. Team USA battled back after MacKinnon’s early goal. Matthews, their captain, nearly put them ahead in the first period, but Binnington shut him down. With 3:08 left in the first, Tkachuk finally broke through, poking in a loose puck after Matthews’ failed wraparound attempt.

Then came Sanderson’s goal—his first of the tournament—off a broken play that put Team USA up 2-1. It was the kind of gritty, lucky goal that championship teams seem to score.

For a moment, it looked like Team USA was taking control. Then, Mitchell Marner happened.

He found Bennett on a rush, set him up perfectly, and Bennett buried it top shelf to tie the game 2-2. The goal flipped the momentum back to Canada, setting up the overtime chaos and McDavid’s dagger.

“Just to see the reaction, just to know what it means to us, you know?” McDavid said postgame. “I know it’s just a quick tournament, and it’s not an Olympic gold medal or anything like that, but it means the world to our group. As you can see, everybody battled so hard all week, so yeah, it was special.”

It wasn’t just special. It was necessary. McDavid, as great as he is, has never had his moment on the international stage. Sidney Crosby had the Golden Goal in 2010. McDavid needed this.

Now, he’s got it. And if this tournament is any preview of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, where NHL players are finally back, McDavid might not be done.

Image: Imagn Images

Connor McDavid

Team Canada

Team canada defeats USA

Team USA

Natasha Bose

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