Unique Scenario May Present Itself In Canada Vs. Finland Game at 4 Nations Face-Off
Photo credit: Eric Bolte-Imagn Images
With Team USA already having punched their ticket to the 4 Nations Face-Off final on Thursday, we could see a wild scenario unfold in Monday's Canada-Finland game.
Thanks to a second consecutive regulation win at the 4 Nations Face-Off on Saturday, defeating Team Canada by a score of 3-1 in Montreal, the Americans have secured their spot in the finals on Thursday.
The loss was a particularly rough one for Sidney Crosby, as it marked the first loss of his international best-on-best career, with the captain now moving to 26-1-0.
As for Canada, they'll need to beat Finland in regulation on Monday afternoon to give themselves another shot at advancing to the finals and setting up a rematch with their heated U.S. rivals.
However, there is a scenario that could render today's game entirely useless. If Canada and Finland go to overtime and Team USA mails it in against Sweden and loses this evening in regulation, Thursday's final will be played between USA and Sweden.
Given William Nylander's recent comments about being frustrated with his team's performance at the tournament, Sweden should be very motivated to beat the U.S. tonight.
This has led Steve Werier, an assistant GM in Florida, to propose a unique solution to the problem that would help either Finland or Canada to advance to the finals regardless of the outcome of the Sweden-USA game this evening.
"A little #4Nations game theory:
If 🇨🇦/🇫🇮 are tied late in reg, could we see them 'cooperate' and each pull their goalie to avoid the mutually assured destruction of neither earning the full 3 pts, which could let 🇸🇪 advance to the final w/ a reg. win over an unmotivated 🇺🇸?
In other words, would you prefer a 50/50 coin flip to reach the Final, or need the US to earn at least a point in a meaningless game this evening? If the odds of the latter is <50%, you each pull the goalie and the first team to score likely moves on."
If 🇨🇦/🇫🇮 are tied late in reg, could we see them 'cooperate' and each pull their goalie to avoid the mutually assured destruction of neither earning the full 3 pts, which could let 🇸🇪 advance to the final w/ a reg. win over an unmotivated 🇺🇸?
In other words, would you prefer a 50/50 coin flip to reach the Final, or need the US to earn at least a point in a meaningless game this evening? If the odds of the latter is <50%, you each pull the goalie and the first team to score likely moves on."
It seems like a long-shot that both teams would agree to pull their goalie to guarantee that one of them advances to face USA on Thursday for the 4 Nations Face-Off Trophy, but it's not completely out of the realm of possibility.
Canada and Finland will kick off shortly after 1:00pm ET, while Sweden and the USA won't face off until 8:00pm this evening.
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