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NHL All-Star Game will never matter again after 4 Nations Face-Off success
Every major professional sports league is starting to face the harsh reality that traditional All-Star games are a thing of the past and no longer relevant in the modern sports culture.
The NFL has pretty much already done away with its game, replacing the Pro Bowl with a series of flag football exhibitions.
The NBA All-Star game has become something of a joke, where even the skills competition has become irrelevant.
It was a similar story for the NHL, which has tried countless formats over the years to try and juice interest back into the game while also punishing players with one-game suspensions for backing out of the game.
In the NHL's case, it has at least found a temporary solution to the problem with the creation of this year's 4 Nation's Face-Off tournament involving the United States, Canada, Sweden and Finland.
It is a makeshift best-on-best tournament, and the early returns on it have been staggeringly good for the league.
Not only have the first four games through Saturday been elite, high-level hockey, but they have also been remarkably intense with no shortage of drama. Saturday's United States vs. Canada game (which the United States won by a 3-1 margin) was one of the most anticipated hockey games of the decade and more than delivered on the hype.
It also did monster ratings in the United States, averaging more than 4.4 million viewers, making it the most-watched non-Stanley Cup Final hockey game since the 2019 season, per ESPN.
NHL #4Nations Face-Off: USA-Canada game delivered 4.4M viewers
— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) February 16, 2025
This is the most-viewed non-Stanley Cup Final hockey telecast since 2019
*Based on Nielsen Fast Nationals
More: https://t.co/5t3Yr5wMJK pic.twitter.com/CPXuTWWgV4
The All-Star game would never, ever come close to these numbers, and it certainly would not do that over a 10-day period like this tournament will.
It is the best possible showcase for the NHL because it not only captures the elements the All-Star game is supposed to deliver on (all of the game's best players in one place playing against each other), but it also makes it seem meaningful.
People care.
Fans care.
The players clearly care more than anybody.
Going back to a traditional All-Star Game on a regular basis after this would be a pointless endeavor. It would simply have less meaning and generate even less interest than it already was.
Implementing more such tournaments in the coming years would make everybody happy and give hockey fans more of what they want: meaningful hockey that everybody cares about.
More must-reads:
- U.S. not satisfied, Sweden hopeful entering 4 Nations round-robin finale
- US-Canada 4 Nations game starts with 3 fights breaking out in first 9 seconds
- The 'Team USA Four Nations Face-Off roster' quiz
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