NHL to host four-nation international tournament in February 2025

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The NHL’s upcoming international hockey league event, scheduled for February 2025, will only feature four national teams, ESPN’s Greg Wyshinski has reported.

These teams are the United States, Canada, Finland, and Sweden. The competition will progress through regional matchups. Each region’s winner, determined by total points or aggregate goals, will face the runner-up from the opposite region.

Unlike previous World Cup of Hockey events, the NHL does not refer to its 2025 international tournament as such due to the limited number of participants. The naming decision also stems from logistical considerations.

During a visit to Sweden last week, NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly expressed optimism about hosting an international tournament in February 2025.

“We’re working with the players’ association on the construct of that,” Daly said. “Then, after that, we would like to be in a regular rotation between the Olympics and the World Cup every other year.”

The last World Cup of Hockey in 2016 featured eight teams. It comprised six national teams, one European team comprising players whose nations were not represented in the tournament and an under-23 North American team.

Differences from previous years

The upcoming tournament will differ from previous ones as it excludes Russian-born players. This decision was made in response to the international backlash against the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

The NHL initially considered allowing Russian players to participate under neutral names and flags. According to Daly, this proposal faced opposition from other countries, likely Finland and Sweden. As a result, Russian players will not be part of the 2025 tournament.

“There’s a bigger issue at play here,” NHLPA executive director Marty Walsh said. “You have other federations that won’t allow other players to play in the tournament. You have to take all of that into account.”

Another difference is the absence of the “best-on-best” competition that many international ice hockey stars have been waiting for in the World Cup of Hockey.

Veteran hockey players, including Connor McDavid, said the best-on-best competition would mean “everything” to him, claiming players his age never had any experience of hockey games on such a stage.