Two former Gopher hockey stars competing in 4 Nations Face-Off

Two former Gopher hockey stars will be among the 92 players competing in the NHL's 4 Nations Face-Off tournament, which begins on Wednesday night in Montreal.

The first-of-its-kind tournament, which is essentially replacing the league's All-Star game this year, features top NHL players from the United States, Canada, Finland, and Sweden. The four countries will play in a round-robin format, with the top two teams advancing to a championship game next Thursday in Boston. Games will be televised on TNT, ESPN, and ABC.

USA: Brock Faber

Faber grew up in Maple Grove, MN, then elected to join the U.S. National Development Team instead of playing high school hockey. He was drafted in the second round by the LA Kings in 2020. Faber spent three years at the University of Minnesota and became one of the best defensemen in college hockey. He was the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year as a sophomore in 2021-22.

In June 2022, Faber's rights were traded to the Wild in the Kevin Fiala deal. He then returned for another season with the Gophers, was named team captain, and was part of the gut-wrenching loss to Quinnipiac in the NCAA Championship game. Faber made his NHL debut with the Wild in April 2023 and appeared in just two regular season games before playing in all six of their playoff games that year.

Last season, Faber had 47 points and finished second to Chicago's Connor Bedard in Calder Trophy voting. The 22-year-old has had another strong season this year and is one of the best young defensemen in the league. He's previously played for Team USA in the World Junior Championships and the 2022 Winter Olympics, so this experience won't be too new to him — except that the competition level will be higher than ever before.

Finland: Erik Haula

Haula spent one season playing high school hockey at Shattuck-Saint Mary's in Faribault, MN, then became the second player born outside of North America to ever play for the Gophers (Austrian Thomas Vanek was the first). Haula racked up 42 goals and 124 points in 114 games for Minnesota from 2010-13. The 33-year-old was drafted by the Wild and spent the first four years of his career there. He now plays for the New Jersey Devils and is in the 12th year of an NHL career spent with seven different franchises.

Here's the tournament's schedule:

Wednesday, Feb. 12 (Montreal)
Canada vs. Sweden, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Thursday, Feb. 13 (Montreal)
United States vs. Finland, 7 p.m. (ESPN)

Saturday, Feb. 15 (Montreal)
Finland vs. Sweden, 12 p.m. (ABC)
United States vs. Canada, 7 p.m. (ABC)

Monday, Feb. 17 (Boston)
Canada vs. Finland, 12 p.m. (TNT)
Sweden vs. United States, 7 p.m. (TNT)

Thursday, Feb. 20 (Boston)
Championship game, 7 p.m. (ESPN)

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