The NHL decided to do something different for their All-Star break this year, and the league came up with the Four Nations Faceoff. The best players from Canada, the United States, Finland and Sweden would come together to play a round robin tournament. To say the Faceoff has been a success would be an understatement. The games have been competitive and fun to watch. In other leagues, the All-Star games are underwhelming but the NHL has delivered with this new format. Given how serious this tournament has been, will performance in this tournament affect trade stock for one player in particular?
Erik Karlsson
Karlsson is currently playing for team Sweden, and has scored two points in two games so far. Sweden is set to face the United States tonight, and I would expect Karlsson to score at least one more point. Karlsson has struggled a bit in Pittsburgh so far this season, as had the Penguins in general. Offensively, his production is higher than the average defenseman, but not near Karlsson's standards. In 57 games this year, Karlsson has scored 38 points, his worst stat being his plus-minus, currently at a putrid -14. Karlsson's name has been mentioned in trade rumors the last few weeks, and his performance at the Four Nations Faceoff has only put more fuel to those fires.
There are other players that have been performing better in the international tournament than in the regular season, such as Sweden's Mika Zibanejad. However, it is an interesting conversation surrounding whether or not teams will take performances in this tournament into account with the deadline looming near. Watching the continued success of Mikko Rantanen could persuade Carolina to give him what he wants contract-wise, or even convince other teams that he's worth trading for.
It could even lower trade stock for some players, such as Canada's Jordan Binnington. Binnington's name was mentioned earlier this year in trade rumors, but it seems that a trade hasn't materialized so far. With Binnington struggling in the tournament so far, the Blues may have a hard time trading him if they were so inclined.
I believe that NHL teams will take performances in this tournament seriously. Players feel the added pressure of competing for their respective countries, and I think that the players know their own team and others around the league are watching. If the NHL were to continue this format in future seasons, I wonder if teams will go so far as to send scouts to these games to test how potential trade targets play with and against the league's best.
The competitive nature of this best-on-best tournament has given players an opportunity to shine, proving their value to the rest of the league. It has also seen some players struggle, tanking their value as trade candidates at the deadline. Regardless, the Four Nation Faceoff has been a resounding success, and I can't wait to watch part two of Canada vs. the United States on Thursday.