Boston Bruins

Bruins Leaders Marchand And McAvoy Selected To 4 Nations Face-Off Rosters

Published

9 months ago

June 28, 2024

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AP Photo/Mary Schwalm

LAS VEGAS– Brad Marchand and Charlie McAvoy are two leaders in the Boston Bruins locker room and have now been selected to lead their countries.

Marchand and McAvoy were among the first players named on Friday morning to the rosters in the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off Tournament, during which Marchand will represent Canada and McAvoy the United States.

Friendly foes 🇺🇸 🇨🇦

Brad Marchand (Team Canada) and Charlie McAvoy (Team USA) have been named to their respective country's rosters for the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off.

📰: https://t.co/wKdWlJMNYW pic.twitter.com/t49y102SIF

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) June 28, 2024

The 4 Nations Face-Off is the return of best-on-best international competition to the NHL for the first time since the World Cup of Hockey in 2016. The seven-game round-robin tournament will be played entirely under NHL rules and feature the United States, Canada, Sweden, and Finland.

McAvoy, a native of Long Beach, New York, was selected to United States’s roster along with Adam Fox of the New York Rangers, Quinn Hughes of the Vancouver Canucks, Jack Eichel of the Vegas Golden Knights, Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs, and Matthew Tkachuck of the Florida Panthers.

“We know each other really well, and obviously we’re in the same division,” Matthews said of McAvoy. “It’ll be fun just to play with each other and kind of be on the same side again. Charlie is an incredible player. He brings so many different elements to the team and the game. He’s physical, defensively, he is very good, and offensively, he’s extremely gifted as well, so I’m really looking forward to it.”

Meanwhile, Marchand, from Halifax, Nova Scotia, will be joined on Team Canada by Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche, Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers, and Brayden Point of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

“He’s a big game player,” Crosby said of Marchand during a virtual media availability. “He has that ability to step up in key situations, and he’s proven that time and time again. I think he can help in so many different ways. As far as on the ice, he can play any role and adapt to be successful. He’s going to help in a lot of ways off the ice as well just with his experience.”

Bruins general manager Don Sweeney is in charge of building the roster for Team Canada. The remainder of the rosters for the 4 Nations Face-Off will be announced sometime between Nov. 29 and Dec. 2.

Both Marchand and McAvoy have represented their respective countries multiple times before. Marchand helped Canada win the World Cup of Hockey in 2016 and competed in the World Junior Championships in both 2007 and 2008, winning gold medals in both tournaments. McAvoy won gold for the United States during the 2014 World U-17 Hockey Challenge and the 2015 IIHF Under-18 World Championship. He was also a part of the 2016 and 2017 IIHF World Junior Championships teams, as well as the 2018 IIHF World Championship team.

Marchand is about to enter his 16th NHL season with the Bruins, having played in 1,029 career games. The 36-year-old appeared in all 82 games for Boston last season, scoring 29 goals and 38 assists for 67 points during his first season as captain of the Bruins. McAvoy, 26, played in 74 games last year, totaling 12 goals and 35 assists for 47 points while leading the Bruins in average time on ice. He has appeared in 454 career games over the span of his seven years in the NHL.

The 4 Nations Face-Off will begin on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, at Bell Center in Montreal. Following the first four games, the tournament will shift to TD Garden in Boston, where the championship will be played on Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025.