It's almost time.
The first-of-its-kind 4 Nations Face-Off gets underway Wednesday, with Zach Werenski the only Columbus Blue Jackets' represented in the tournament.
But what is the tournament?
1st Ohio Battery has you covered with what to look for and what to expect:
What Is It?
Replacing the NHL's traditional All-Star game, the four-team tournament will be made up of players representing the United States, Canada, Finland, and Sweden.
The captains for each of the teams are: Auston Matthews (USA), Sidney Crosby (Canada), Victor Hedman (Sweden), and Aleksander Barkov (Finland).
All four teams are amongst the best in the world, with each ranked in the top seven in the International Ice Hockey Federation men's world rankings.
What's The Schedule?
The games, which will be in a round-robin format, start Wednesday at the Montreal Canadiens’ Bell Centre.
Team Canada faces Team Sweden at 8 p.m. Wednesday on TNT. Team USA will play Thursday at 8 p.m. against Team Finland on ESPN. All four teams are in action Saturday, with Finland facing Sweden at 1 p.m. and USA versus Canada at 8 p.m. Both of those games will be featured on ABC.
The venue then shifts to the Boston Bruins’ TD Garden for the final three games. Canada and Finland face-off at 1 p.m. Monday on TNT, with USA and Sweden completing the round-robin format at 8 p.m., also on TNT.
The two teams with the highest point totals (more on that in a moment) will play in the championship game on Thursday, Feb. 20th at 8 p.m. on ESPN. There will be no third-place game; two teams will exit the tournament after round-robin play concludes.
What's Different?
The point system will be modified for this tournament. A regulation win will be worth three points, an overtime/shootout win worth two, an overtime/shootout loss is one point, and a regulation loss is worth zero. This is a concept that has been floated for the NHL's regular season schedule at various times, though hasn't picked up enough momentum to be seriously considered.
Overtime will still be 3-on-3, but is extended to ten minutes. For the championship game, overtime rules flip to Stanley Cup playoff-style: teams play 20-minute overtimes until someone scores.
Who's Going To Win?
According to FanDuel, there's no clear-cut favorite for the 4 Nations. Team Canada has a slight edge to win the tournament over Team USA, at +145 to +155. Team Sweden trails behind at +420, with Team Finland a longshot at +1000.
For the individual games, Team USA is -345 to defeat Finland on Thursday night, is a slight underdog at +105 for the Saturday night showdown against Canada, and is a -205 favorite for Monday's match versus Sweden.
Re: Zach Werenski
The only Columbus Blue Jacket in the tournament, Werenski is poised for a big role on the Team USA blueline. He's been paired with Charlie McAvoy of the Boston Bruins in what seems to be the team's top defensive pairing. McAvoy has seven goals and 16 assists in 50 games with the Bruins this season, while Werenski's Norris-candidate season has already seen him set a career high in points (59) through just 55 games.
Werenski, a two-time NHL All-Star, gets the chance to be reunited with former Blue Jackets head coach John Tortorella. He's an assistant coach on the team under head coach Mike Sullivan.
