The NHL finally fixed its All-Star Game by dumping it for international hockey

For years, the major sports leagues have helplessly flailed at different ways to try to fix their own respective All-Star Game amidst sagging interest both from players and fans. But the NHL has pulled an absolute masterstroke in finally getting rid of it all together and debuting the 4 Nations Face-Off over what was its All-Star break.

The 4 Nations sets aside All-Star Game shenanigans and replaces something meaningless with something that absolutely matters – best-on-best international hockey. Four of the top six countries in the world are represented with the United States, Canada, Finland, and Sweden. The countries will play a round robin schedule in the first round and the top two teams in the standings will play for the championship.

The first four games take place in Montreal while the final three games will be in Boston including the final. And it all takes place over a span of eight days from February 12-20.

The first-ever 4 Nations game took place on Wednesday night at a packed house in Montreal as Canada beat Sweden in a 4-3 overtime instant classic. Mitch Marner scored the game-winner in an extended 3v3 overtime after Sweden had come from 3-1 down in the third period to tie it.

MITCH MARNER!!! 🚨

He wins it for Canada in just an amazing overtime! 🍁 #4Nations pic.twitter.com/lcXpPbkoBw

— NHL (@NHL) February 13, 2025

Just look at that video! A sold-out crowd. Players jumping up and down in jubilation. It’s not exactly the scene of last year’s All-Star Game when Team Matthews beat Team McDavid 7-4 in the three-on-three exhibition tournament final. If you can remember anything about the 2024 NHL All-Star Game you are either a serious, hardcore hockey fan or you have a serious sports betting problem.

Who would have thought the solution that sports was seeking over its All-Star dilemma was just… getting rid of them entirely.

Think about it, is any hockey fan screaming to see a return of the 3v3 fantasy draft format from last year’s All-Star Game where a bunch of guys get together with the same intensity that you’d see at your local ice rink during a children’s open skate? Or would they rather see the best players in the world compete for their country at the top level in the 4 Nations Face-Off? It’s no contest.

Of course, the allure of international hockey is something very unique to the sport. It goes all the way back to the days of the Cold War where hockey fans would get their only glimpse of the top professionals from the Soviet Union in international competition. Canada’s victory over the USSR in the 1972 Summit Series has been called the “greatest moment in Canada’s sporting history.”

There has not been enough events over the years to make it seem watered down in any way. If anything, fans are craving more of it after top NHL players sat out the last two Winter Olympics and there not being a World Cup of Hockey since 2016. It’s been almost a decade since we last saw NHL players compete at this level.

Both the NHL and NHLPA should be applauded for allowing the tournament to happen in the middle of the season. While everyone is celebrating the immediate success of the 4 Nations Face-Off now, a serious injury to Connor McDavid or Nathan Mackinnon would change that conversation in a heartbeat. But it seems as if everyone in the hockey world is willing to take that chance. And with the 4 Nations, Winter Olympics, and a returning World Cup, international hockey in February could become an annual tradition alternating between the various events. Just look at this potential schedule.

2025: 4 Nations Face-Off
2026: Winter Olympics
2027: 4 Nations Face-Off
2028: World Cup of Hockey
2029: 4 Nations Face-Off
2030: Winter Olympics

If the NHL’s schedule plays out like this, we may see our last NHL All-Star Game at its scheduled happening in 2026, which for now is intended as a send-off for the Olympics. But let’s be honest, that should be its last playing if it even goes ahead at all.

Fans love international sports. It’s why the Olympics and World Cup in soccer are seen as such huge events not just in America, but around the globe. Ask golf fans what their favorite event is behind The Masters and they will likely tell you it’s the Ryder Cup. And the NHL can definitely build on this initial 4 Nations Face-Off success. It’s perfect timing for the league to take place right after the Super Bowl and an invitation to watch hockey that really matters as a bridge to the NHL Playoffs.

It’s like what Adam Silver was trying to accomplish with the NBA Cup.. but also 10,000 times better.

The spectacle and meaning of international hockey can’t really be replicated in other sports. But it’s clear that the All-Star Game is a dying breed. The NFL is so popular and powerful that it has already eliminated its Pro Bowl in favor of a flag football game. Even though viewership dipped to a new low at 4.7 million, that’s still a number that any other league would give multiple limbs for just for any game, let alone an exhibition. And even if it keeps dropping or disappears entirely… it’s a flag football game.

The NBA is at their wit’s end with how to fix their All-Star Game after years of changing formats, teams, and effort on the court that is truly laughable. The 2024 ASG was the final straw for Adam Silver and everyone as the East somehow put up 211 points in a 48 minute game. This year will see the first tournament style approach much like the NHL’s recent iterations, and we have already seen how that concept died off once before.

Would players and fans be engaged if the NBA put on a USA vs The World showcase? Maybe? Although it’s hard to see LeBron James and Steph Curry going all out in something created from scratch and not an Olympic gold medal. But literally nothing would be worse than the product that the NBA currently puts on the floor for its All-Star Game so it’s worth trying something different until it’s scrapped in its entirety.

The MLB All-Star Game is really the only one with the best chance at staying power given its history and prestige. It actually saw an increase to 7.6 million viewers last year as the sport saw an overall rebound. Baseball could follow hockey’s blueprint with a mid-season World Baseball Classic as it was a massive success in 2023. But the length of the tournament and a 162 game schedule might restrict it to the early spring.

So while those All-Star Games keep slipping or hold the status quo, we can at least give thanks that one sport has figured it out. The NHL All-Star Game is on its way out. International hockey is in. And it’s going to be a February staple on the sports calendar.