Ever since the end of the uber-successful 4 Nations Face-Off, hockey fans have questioned whether the tournament will return in future years. One of the many weighing in on this was ESPN NHL studio host Steve Levy, who shared his thoughts on The Dan Patrick Show.
As most already know, the finale of the 4 Nations Face-Off last Thursday brought attention back to the NHL in a truly astonishing way. In Canada’s 3-2 overtime victory over the United States, 9.3 million viewers on average tuned into the ESPN broadcast, which makes it the new most-watched non-Olympic hockey game on record in the United States since the 1988 Nielsen measurement era.
Steve Levy fully acknowledged the success of the 4 Nations Face-Off. However, with several international hockey events on the horizon, Levy detailed how he believes this may be the end of the 4 Nations Face-Off as we currently know it.
“We needed a spark,” said Levy. “I think people have grown tired of the All-Star breaks. All of the corporate sponsors and those kinds of things. I think the skills competitions are all getting old. I think we needed some kind of a spark. The NHL and hockey saw the Olympics on the horizon. That’s the amazing thing about this 4 Nations.
“I think that this is a one-off. I don’t think we ever see 4 Nations again. This was a stopgap despite how successful it was. The NHL has already said that they’re going to do World Cup of Hockey, and that could be eight nations, eight countries. So I think this was a one-off. I don’t think we see 4 Nations again in this exact format with the Olympics next year.”
“I think that this is a one-off. I don’t think we ever see 4 Nations again. This was a stopgap despite how successful it was; NHL has already said they’re going to do World Cup of Hockey, and that could be eight nations, eight countries…” – Steve Levypic.twitter.com/gtpdyvA7Ty
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) February 25, 2025
Patrick then asked Levy whether he thought the 4 Nations Face-Off simply being a one-off event would be a mistake for the NHL.
Levy replied by outlining how the NHL got their ideal scenario with Team USA facing off against Team Canada in the final game. In his eyes, the perception of the tournament could have looked much different had it been Team Sweden against Team Finland versus Team Sweden in the final.
“This could have gone awfully wrong,” added Levy. “We could have had the Fins and the Swedes. And while they despise each other at least as much as America and Canada do, I’m not sure 9.3 million people would have tuned in in the U.S.”
As Levy alluded, the 4 Nations Face-Off will almost certainly not be held in 2026 or 2028 due to the 2026 Winter Olympic Games and the 2028 World Cup of Hockey.
As for 2027 and 2029, it doesn’t sound like the NHL has made any plans to decide on hosting the event at this point. In a conversation with Rich Eisen on Monday, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman detailed that he “doesn’t have all the right answers yet” regarding the tournament’s future.
Maybe the 4 Nations Face-Off was intended to be a taste of international hockey for fans watching at home. However, given the tournament’s success, it sure seems like some iteration of the tournament is undoubtedly much more intriguing than a return to their All-Star Game format from a long-term perspective for the NHL.
Even if the NHL opts not to bring back the 4 Nations Face-Off as we are accustomed to it, the league has now been given the blueprint for what works during their All-Star break, which is much more than other major sports leagues like the NBA and NFL can say.
So perhaps there is a way for the league to incorporate elements of the 4 Nations Face-Off without oversaturating fans’ interest in international hockey.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.