USA, Canada to meet for title after fight-filled first matchup WSOC TV [Video]

Violence was on the menu the first time USA and Canada faced off.

We’ll get Round 2 on Thursday thanks to Canada’s win over Finland on Monday afternoon. Canada secured a 5-3 win over Finland in 4-Nations Face-Off play to advance to the final against USA on Thursday night.

Canada entered Monday’s game needing a win in regulation to guarantee a trip to Thursday’s championship game. USA had already clinched a spot in the game thanks to a 3-1 win over Canada in round-robin play on Saturday.

That game reignited a USA-Canada hockey rivalry that had lied dormant for years. USA and Canada last met in the 2022 Olympics. But that game featured youth players as the NHL had pulled its players from the Olympics in 2018 and 2022.

Saturday gave the best players from both nations their first look at each other while representing their countries in years. The result was three fights in the first nine seconds of play.

USA’s Matthew Tkachuk and Canada’s Brandon Hagel got …