Last night, the round robin of the 4 Nations Face-Off concluded with Sweden defeating USA 2-1. Earlier in the afternoon, Canada punched their ticket to the championship game with a 5-3 win over Finland. The stage is now set for an epic rematch between Canada vs. USA on Thursday night at 7:00 pm CT in Boston at TD Garden. The Championship game for this tournament is a one game, winner takes all scenario, with the winners claiming the trophy, gold medals, and a share of an unknown amount of prize money.

The Jets held their first practice since the 4 Nations Face-Off break began today, an optional skate, in preparation for the final 26 games of the regular season. With Connor Hellebuyck still with Team USA, the Jets recalled Kaapo Kahkonen from the Manitoba Moose as a “practice player”, as part of the rules set up by the NHL for the back end of the 4 Nations Face-Off break. The Jets continue to deal with several injuries on their roster, including to Morgan Barron and Adam Lowry, and injury updates for these players will be made available before the Jets return to play on Saturday.

Switching over to some observations & statistics on the 3 Jets at the 4 Nations Face-Off during their final round robin games now, beginning with Canada’s Josh Morrissey. Canada’s number 1 defenceman Cale Makar returned to the lineup Monday afternoon, meaning Morrissey’s role was slightly diminished. Playing on the 2nd defence pairing with Colton Parayko, Morrissey played the 3rd most ice time of Canada’s defence, logging 19:12 time on ice. In the 5-3 win, Morrissey was a +1, had 2 shots on goal and 4 blocked shots. There’s been some good chemistry between Morrissey and Parayko this tournament, and Canada will look to continue to rely on this 2nd pairing to play their given roles in the championship game vs. USA on Thursday.

In Monday’s prime time game in Boston, Team USA, featuring Kyle Connor and Connor Hellebuyck, were defeated 2-1 by Sweden, who claimed their 1st win of the tournament. The result still left USA in 1st place with 6 points, while Sweden finished tied with Canada with 5 points. The 1st tiebreaker for this tournament is head-to-head, and Canada beat Sweden 4-3 in OT in the 1st game of the tournament, so Sweden will finish in 3rd place. Connor Hellebuyck had the night off, as USA decided to rest Hellebuyck for the championship game and gave the start to Dallas Stars goalie Jake Oettinger.

With Hellebuyck out, more focus was on Kyle Connor, who played less than 10 minutes against Canada on Saturday. Connor had a slightly better game this time around, logging 14:27 time on ice. Connor finished a -1 with 1 shot on goal and 1 hit. After USA’s 1st game, Connor’s role has diminished, and he’ll likely remain in the bottom 6 for the championship game unless injuries call for changes in their lineup.

Now that it’s confirmed to be Canada vs. USA in the championship game, all the attention turns to setting up this epic rivalry on Thursday night. Josh Morrissey and Team Canada will be looking to get revenge on Team USA after losing to them 3-1 on Saturday. Morrissey will remain as Canada’s “3rd” option on defence, and will likely play around 20 minutes in this big game. Kyle Connor (deserving or not), will continue to play on USA’s bottom 6, with other players such as the Tkachuks stepping up and securing spots in the top 6. Hellebuyck will be back in goal on Thursday, and he’ll be looking for his 3rd straight great performance. If Hellebuyck shines again and USA wins this tournament, Hellebuyck is a top 3 (maybe top 1) candidate to win tournament MVP.

Stay tuned here at Jets Nation for more updates on the Jets as they start to prepare for their return to play on Saturday. Check back here on Friday afternoon for an analysis on Thursday night’s championship game, where either Morrissey or Connor & Hellebuyck will become a part of the winning 4 Nations Face-Off team.