Devils Players React To 4 Nations Face-Off Announcements

On Wednesday, multiple New Jersey Devils players were named to their respective country's 4 Nations Face-Off rosters.

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Jack Hughes will represent the United States, Erik Haula will represent Finland, and Jesper Bratt and Jacob Markstrom will play for Sweden.

"It is a privilege," Markstrom said of representing Sweden. "Not many people get to play in these tournaments. I am going to enjoy every second of it."

New Jersey's goaltender additionally explained that Bratt is the perfect player for the Round Robin-style tournament.

"He is coming to work," Markstom said of his teammate. "He is not leaving anything to chance and is going to make sure that he is going to do everything he can to be ready to help team Sweden be as successful as possible. I am excited to do this journey from Jersey to Montreal together."

Bratt appeared on the NHL Network with Haula and spoke about wanting to always play in a tournament like this.

"It is something you always dreamed of," the Swedish winger said. "I remember after my draft when I was watching the World Cup hockey. I remember dreaming of being in that situation and playing in a best-on-best tournament. Obviously, I'm super excited and very honored to be putting on the jersey and playing a best-on-best tournament. Super exciting, and I'm looking forward to it."

Haula joked that despite being teammates now, Bratt will become the enemy in February.

"It is going to be a different experience," he said. "A mid-year tournament, and you are going to be playing against your teammates, and then they are going to be enemies. (Bratt is) going to be wearing that Sweden jersey, so I might have to run him through the boards a couple of times."

And what about his goaltender?

"Would love nothing more than put a couple of pucks behind them," Haula said with a smile.

On a more serious note, the 33-year-old shared that Team Finland is a tight-knit group with a team-first mentality.

Related: Devils' Jack Hughes Named To Team USA 4 Nations Face-Off Roster

After Thursday's practice, Hughes spoke about playing for the United States.

"I have always had a lot of fun playing with the U.S. and had great experiences," he said. "I think with the Olympics coming up, that is definitely what everyone is really excited for. This is a pretty good stepping stone leading into that."

"We are all here to serve the New Jersey Devils and our team. You know, bigger than that, we are here to serve the game and serve the sport," head coach Sheldon Keefe said Tuesday. "An opportunity for our fans to see a best-on-best like that, even though it is the 4 Nations, it is an incredible opportunity."

The 4 Nations Face-Off rosters are comprised of 23 NHL Players (20 skaters, three goalies) who are under an NHL contract for the 2024-25 season and were on an NHL roster as of Dec. 2, 2024. A total of seven games played from Feb. 12 to 20, 2025. Four games will be played at the Bell Centre in Montreal, and three games, including the championship game, will be played at TD Garden in Boston.

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