The 4 Nations Face-Off rosters have been released, and it started with teams Finland and Sweden on Wednesday, followed by Team Canada and the United States. The rosters were essentially what every NHL fan and media outlet had predicted. However, there were a few names that were left off that were shocking.
For Team Finland, there were two players that many expected to be on the team but didn’t get the call. Instead, they could be injury fill-ins or watching from home while the tournament plays out Feb. 12-20, 2025.
Jesperi Kotkaniemi
Jesperi Kotkaniemi was a name that many hockey fans had on the Finnish roster. Although he has struggled at times in his career, he is still considered to be one of the top 25 Finnish players in the NHL. Kotkaniemi was a part of the Finnish swing that saw Patrik Laine also emerge as one of the game’s young stars. It was shocking to see Joel Armia make the team over Kotkaniemi; unfortunately, that’s the way the decision process goes.
Henri Jokiharju
Henri Jokiharju had a good chance to make the team to represent his country. However, it seemed that the management group went with experience over talent. Olli Määttä, Juuso Välimäki, and Jani Hakanpää are three names that were shocking to see over Jokiharju. It does make sense; it looks like both Finland and Canada tried to go for chemistry on the blue line. Both Välimäki and Määttä play on the Utah Hockey Club and are familiar with one another. As for Hakanpää, he and Lindell played together during his time with the Dallas Stars. Typically, international teams do this in fast tournaments so they can have their blue line click right away to increase their chance of winning. Unfortunately, that left Jokiharju on the outside looking in.
The 4 Nation Face-Off runs Feb. 12-20 in what should a very exciting skilled and talented tournament. NHL fans, we finally get to see best-on-best.
Next: Notable Players Left Off Team USA’s 4 Nations Face-Off Roster
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