Panthers will soon have another champion. They have a player on every 4 Nations roster

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Florida Panthers left wing Matthew Tkachuk acknowledges the crowd after the Panthers defeated the Ottawa Senators in an NHL hockey game Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

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Florida Panthers’ Sam Reinhart shoots the puck while St. Louis Blues’ Jordan Kyrou, back right, defends during the third period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Connor Hamilton)

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Florida Panthers center Sam Bennett (9) celebrates with left wing Matthew Tkachuk (19) after scoring a goal during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Ottawa Senators Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

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Florida Panthers left wing Matthew Tkachuk (19) celebrates with center Aleksander Barkov (16) after scoring a goal during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Ottawa Senators Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

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Florida Panthers defenseman Niko Mikkola (77) skates with the puck as New York Islanders left wing Pierre Engvall (18) defends during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

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Florida Panthers’ Eetu Luostarinen (27) looks on during a face off against the St. Louis Blues during the second period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Connor Hamilton)

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Florida Panthers center Anton Lundell gestures as President Donald Trump speaks during a ceremony with the Florida Panthers NHL hockey team to celebrate their 2024 Stanley Cup win, in the East Room of the White House, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

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Florida Panthers defenseman Gustav Forsling (42) celebrates with teammates on the bench after scoring an empty-net goal during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Anaheim Ducks, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (David Santiago/Miami Herald via AP)

By Tim Reynolds

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — The Florida Panthers are about to have another champion. Maybe a few of them.

The reigning Stanley Cup champions are the only NHL team to have at least one player on each of the four rosters for the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament that starts this week, meaning the Panthers are guaranteed to have someone on the winning squad.

Sam Reinhart and Sam Bennett will skate for Canada, Gustav Forsling is playing for Sweden, Matthew Tkachuk is competing for the United States and four Panthers players — captain Aleksander Barkov, Anton Lundell, Eetu Luostarinen and Niko Mikkola — are representing Finland.

“I’m not cheering for anybody, because somebody’s winning. I know that for a fact,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice said. “There’s a group of guys coming back in a really good mood.”

The Panthers have plenty more representation than just players at 4 Nations. Assistant coach Tuomo Ruutu will serve in that same role for Finland, assistant coach Myles Fee is the scouting coach for Sweden, assistant general manager Patric Hornqvist has that role for Sweden, equipment manager Teddy Richards has that same job for the U.S. and Panthers general manager and hockey operations president Bill Zito is an assistant GM for USA Hockey at this tournament and the Olympics next winter.

“It’s a little bit of a precursor to the Olympics,” Zito told the Panthers’ broadcast on Scripps Sports during Saturday’s game. “We have the opportunity now with 4 Nations — Finland, Sweden, Canada and the U.S. — to put their best NHL players against each other, everybody head to head in a winner-take-all. ... It’s like having a playoff series in the middle of the season.”

All teams will play three games in the tournament, and then two advance to a championship game. There are games Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday in Montreal, before the field shifts to Boston for games on Feb. 17 and then the title game on Feb. 19.

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“I haven’t had the opportunity in nine years to do this,” said Tkachuk, who will join his brother, Brady Tkachuk of the Ottawa Senators, on the U.S. squad. “I’ve been really looking forward to this as my career has gone on. And now, finally, to be in Year 9 and have my first opportunity, I just can’t wait for it. I think it’s going to be really, really good hockey and something that everybody should look forward to.”

Maurice isn’t planning to go to the tournament. He thinks he’ll stay home and enjoy the Panthers’ 12-day break before resuming practice on Feb. 20 and getting back into game action on Feb. 22 against Seattle.

“We’ve got so many people involved with it. Personally, I’m very interested,” Maurice said. “If we didn’t have as many people, I still think it’s really, really good for the game. It’s actually best possibly for the fans because they can cheer for a different team and they get to cheer for their country in-season, which I think is great. The guys that get to go to this tournament, they won’t forget it.”

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AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL

Tim Reynolds

NBA writer

Olympic Hightlights

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FILE - South Africa’s Jacques Freitag competes in the men’s high jump of the 2004 Olympic Games, in the Olympic Stadium in Athens, Friday Aug. 20, 2004. Local media is reporting that South African police have discovered the body of former high jump world champion Jacques Freitag after he went missing last month. The reports said the 42-year-old, who won the 2003 world title in Paris and competed at the 2004 Olympics, had been shot. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)

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FILE - Ilona Maher of USA is tackled by Sharni Williams of Australia in a semifinal of the Rugby World Cup 7’s championship held in Cape Town, South Africa, Sunday, Sept. 11, 2022. The main task for Maher, the breakout social media star on TikTok at the Tokyo Olympics, is winning a medal in Paris. (AP Photo/Halden Krog, File)

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FILE - Jacques Freitag of South Africa waves his national flag after he won the Men’s high jump event at the World Athletics Championships, at the Stade de France in Saint Denis, north of Paris, Monday, Aug. 25, 2003. Local media is reporting that South African police have discovered the body of former high jump world champion Jacques Freitag after he went missing last month. The reports said the 42-year-old, who won the 2003 world title in Paris and competed at the 2004 Olympics, had been shot. (AP Photo/Thomas Kienzle, File)

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Sammy Sullivan of USA in action during HSBC rugby sevens series in Singapore, on May 4, 2024. The anthem played as Army officer Sammy Sullivan stood to attention and saluted beside her U.S. rugby teammates before a gold-medal game in Hong Kong against Olympic champion New Zealand. No prizes for guessing where her mind may have drifted to: Paris in July. (AP Photo/Suhaimi Abdullah)

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USA Water Polo Women’s Senior National Team attacker Ryann Neushul, left, trains at Long Beach City College Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024, in Long Beach, Calif. Following in the footsteps of two older sisters who won gold with the U.S. women’s water polo team, Ryann Neushul is making her Olympic debut in Paris this summer. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

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Iranian wrestler Iman Mahdavi, 28, practices at the Lotta Club Seggiano gym, in Pioltello , northern Italy, Wednesday, Feb. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

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FILE - Steven van de Velde of the Netherlands competes during the CEV Beach Volley Nations Cup Vienna 2022 men’s semifinal game against Austria at the Red Bull Beach Arena in Vienna, Austria, Sunday, Aug. 7, 2022. Van de Velde, convicted and imprisoned eight years ago for raping an underage girl in England has qualified for the Paris Olympics. (AP Photo/Florian Schroetter, File)