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McDavid plays the hero as Canada wins 4 Nations in OT (1:53)
Connor McDavid scores the winning goal in overtime to give Canada the win in the 4 Nations championship game. (1:53)
Associated Press
Feb 20, 2025, 11:41 PM ET
BOSTON -- Connor McDavid scored at 8:18 of overtime in the 4 Nations Face-Off championship game to give Canada a 3-2 victory over the United States on Thursday night as the North American rivals turned what had been a tuneup for the 2026 Olympics into a geopolitical brawl over anthems and annexation as much as international hockey supremacy.
Nathan MacKinnon and Sam Bennett also scored for Canada. Jordan Binnington made 25 saves in the first three periods and six more in the extra period on the same ice where he helped the St. Louis Blues win the Stanley Cup five years ago.
Brady Tkachuk and Jake Sanderson scored for the Americans, and Connor Hellebuyck stopped 22 shots in regulation and three more in OT.
The already-ripe rivalry took on added intensity with the cross-border animosity following President Donald Trump's tariff threats and talk of making Canada the 51st U.S. state. Trump called the American team Thursday morning to wish it well, then turned to social media to poke Canadian Prime Minster Justin Trudeau with more annexation chatter.
The political backdrop combined with the quality of the round-robin game, which the United States won 3-1 on Saturday, to bring the atmosphere of a Stanley Cup Final or Olympic gold-medal game to TD Garden.
Fans in their team jerseys waved flags, shouted for their countrymen and continued the booing of the opposing national anthem that has become a nightly undercard for what most agree has been one of the best international hockey competitions in decades.
The American fans chanted "U-S-A! U-S-A!" to spur on the home team; in the third period, a cheer of "Johnny Hockey! Johnny Hockey!" reminded the players that they were playing for the memory of former Boston College and Calgary Flames star Johnny Gaudreau, who, along with his brother, was killed by an alleged drunk driver while bicycling in New Jersey on the eve of their sister's wedding last summer.
"Miracle on Ice" Olympic hero and honorary U.S. captain Mike Eruzione wore a Gaudreau jersey during a pregame ceremonial puck drop with Canadian counterpart Wayne Gretzky.
