Canada beats US in charged 4 Nations hockey final

Canada beats U.S. in finals of 4 Nations Face-Off

President Trump has threatened to make Canada the 51st US state

(Image credit: Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)

What happened

Canada beat the U.S. 3-2 last night at Boston's TD Garden to win the inaugural 4 Nations Face-Off hockey tournament. Canada's Connor McDavid scored the winning goal just over 8 minutes into overtime. Canada and the U.S. advanced to the final after eliminating Sweden and Finland.

Who said what

President Donald Trump's threatened tariffs and persistent "talk of making Canada the 51st U.S. state" turned "what had been a tune-up for the 2026 Olympics into a geopolitical brawl over anthems and annexation as much as international hockey supremacy," The Associated Press said. Trump called the U.S. team Thursday and later derided Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as "Governor Trudeau" on social media. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said "we look forward to the United States beating our soon-to-be 51st state, Canada."

"You can't take our country — and you can't take our game," Trudeau posted on X after the game. "Canada needed a win, and the players bared that on their shoulders," Canada head coach Jon Cooper said. "This wasn't a win for themselves. This was a win for 40-plus million people. And the guys knew it, and they delivered."

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What next?

The U.S. and Canada will next cross sticks at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy, with NHL players participating for the first time in years. The last time the U.S. "won a best-on-best tournament involving NHL players" was against Canada in 1996, USA Today said. "Canada has now won six of the last seven tournaments since then."

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.