Game Preview – 4 Nations Face-Off Championship Game, Drew Doughty to play for title

WHO: Team Canada (1-1-0-1) vs. Team USA (2-0-0-1)
WHAT: 4 Nations Face-Off Championship Game
WHEN: Thursday, February 20 @ 5:00 PM Pacific
WHERE: TD Garden – Boston, MA
HOW TO FOLLOW: VIDEO: ESPN, ESPN+, Disney + – AUDIO – Sirius XM – TWITTER: Hockey Canada & USA Hockey

TODAY’S MATCHUP: LA Kings defenseman Drew Doughty will play for another gold medal this evening, as he and Team Canada take on the United States in the championship game of the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off.

HEAD-TO-HEAD: Team USA was victorious by a 3-1 margin when these teams met on Saturday evening in Montreal.

Doughty was one of his team’s best performers in that game, collecting an assist on the lone goal for Team Canada. Per The Athletic’s player model, Doughty was the most impactful skater in that game for either team, contributing at both the offensive and defensive ends of the ice.

Storyline Of The Day – No Dought About It
For Doughty, it’s another opportunity to win on the international stage.

He’s won a gold medal twice at the Olympics. He’s also won the World Cup of Hockey. He won the World Juniors as a U-20 player and has a silver medal at the World Championships. With this being the first, and perhaps only, 4 Nations Face-Off, it’s another chance for Doughty to add to his already impressive collection of team accolades.

On a personal note, Doughty has had himself a strong tournament. He’s played in just six regular-season games so far this season due to his ankle injury, but now he’s got three more under his belt at a really high level, against the world’s best players at a level of hockey even higher than a typical NHL game. All in all, Doughty has handled that level quite well. ESPN labeled Doughty as Team Canada’s “most-important defenseman” in the round-robin games. Per The Athletic, Doughty’s impact score is that of the third-best defenseman in the tournament and the highest on Team Canada.

On the home front, Kings Head Coach Jim Hiller has been watching. He was very complementary of Adrian Kempe’s tournament, which ended in three games, but continues to be in awe of what Doughty is accomplishing.

“It really is incredible what he’s done,” Jim Hiller said of Doughty’s play. “Everyone talks about the level of hockey and the intensity, how good it is and to go there after playing in six games, and to play at that level, I can’t even imagine. He continues just to really, really add to his overall resume, which is one of the greatest, the best of his generation.”

From a Kings standpoint, there was a lot of hope that this tournament would be a win/win for Doughty and for the organization. A two-week break couldn’t have come at a worse time for Doughty, who was just six games into his lineup return. He needed to – and really wanted to – play games. He got that opportunity as a late add for Team Canada, as the replacement for Alex Pietrangelo.

Hiller believes that Doughty’s performance to date has done exactly what the Kings hoped it would. He expressed pride that Doughty gets the chance to compete for a title and also feels the games were beneficial in getting his number-one defenseman back to his usual form.

“I would hope so,” he added. “I think he’s past his typical speed, at this point. It’s hard for me to believe. I think good for us in the end too. We’re really happy and proud of him, to play for that championship. I think it really is going to benefit us in the long run.”

3 To Watch For –
– Doughty is certainly fired up for tonight.

“I’m just super excited. This is what we had in our minds the whole time while playing in [the 4 Nations]. Getting another chance at the U.S. is the biggest thing. We want to win the championship, but especially against them.”

Sharing that above quote from Mayor’s Manor, with John Hoven on-site in Boston for the championship game. More from Doughty, via MM, HERE. Some good thoughts from Doughty in advance of the championship game.

– Either way, though, a member of the Kings organization will come home a champion.

Head Equipment Manager Darren Granger is alongside Doughty on Team Canada, while Goaltending Coach Mike Buckley is a part of the staff for Team USA. They’ll square off tonight for all the marbles, with one side walking away as a champion.

On Buckley, his absence has actually provided an interesting dilemma for the Kings.

Who is coaching the goaltenders?

“I see the instructions, but I’m the wrong guy, I stay away from that,” Hiller said with a smile. “Bucks does a great job. He’s got Derik Johnston helping out now directly with that. I just continue to say hello to those guys, see how they’re doing, but that’s about all they need from me.”

Hiller has always maintained that he’s not one to dive too deep into goaltending. A lot of trust in Buckley to take the lead in that area, as he will do again this weekend upon his return to California, with a stick tap to Johnston in the interim for working with Darcy Kuemper and David Rittich.

– Will everyone on the Kings be watching tonight?

Not sure about that.

“I didn’t watch a lot……as in, not at all,” Kings captain Anze Kopitar said with a smile, when asked about his thoughts on Adrian Kempe’s tournament.

Hey, it’s a break from hockey for these guys and while a lot of guys were tuned in, a lot of guys weren’t. For Kopitar, the break was a chance to recharge the batteries a bit at a crowded time in the season and be a dad for a week. Similar to goaltender Darcy Kuemper, who welcomed his second child just before the break.

Doughty and Team Canada against the United States, puck drops tonight at 5 PM Pacific on ESPN! Should be a fun one before we fully return to Kings hockey tomorrow morning.