The game may not have featured Team USA, but the Boston audience for the Canada-Finland match recalled the actions of their northern neighbors during the U.S. national anthem and reciprocated. During the 4 Nations Face-Off game, Canadian fans in Montreal were heard booing the U.S. anthem, which led to three fights occurring within the first nine seconds of the game, ultimately resulting in a 3-1 victory for the U.S.
As Canada’s national anthem played on Sunday afternoon at TD Garden in Boston, some fans were again heard booing. Tensions were palpable both on the ice and in the stands, particularly after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau expressed his pride in Canada following the boos directed at “The Star-Spangled Banner.”
The animosity has been evident in NHL games since President Donald Trump announced tariffs on Canada, which have since been paused, and he also jokingly suggested Canada could become the “51st state.” While some Canadian players, like Drew Doughty, prefer not to hear boos during anthems, U.S. defenseman Zach Werenski expressed his discontent.
“We knew it was going to happen,” Werenski acknowledged. “It happened the last game, it’s been happening in the NHL before this, and we knew tonight was going to be the same way. We obviously don’t like it.” The U.S. also faced boos from the crowd before decisively defeating Finland 6-1 in their previous game. “It is what it is,” Werenski added. “We kind of had an idea. We used it as motivation the best we could and found a way to get a win. But we had an idea going into it, so it wasn’t a surprise. Definitely don’t like it, though.”
The intensity escalated as fights broke out immediately after the puck dropped when Canada and the U.S. faced off. Matthew Tkachuk engaged in a bout with Brandon Hagel, followed by his brother Brady squaring off with Sam Bennett, who is also Matthew’s NHL teammate on the Florida Panthers. A third altercation in the Canadian zone saw J.T. Miller and Colton Parayko drop their gloves.
Canada struck first with a goal from NHL superstar Connor McDavid, but the U.S. responded with three unanswered goals to secure the victory and earn a spot in the 4 Nations Face-Off championship game. Canada’s win over Finland on Sunday sets up the highly anticipated rematch for the title, scheduled for Thursday night. It remains to be seen whether the atmosphere will include more boos and fights during this matchup.
