The GM of the Boston Bruins is now tasked with assembling Canada’s best roster for next year’s 4 Nations Face-Off.
Hockey Canada announced Don Sweeney as Team Canada’s GM for the 2025 international tournament and as the assistant GM for the national squad at the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Italy. Barring any changes, this will be Sweeney’s first time managing Canada’s national men’s squad. He was previously named GM for the 2022 Olympics if NHL players participated, but the league decided not to allow participation.
Dallas Stars GM Jim Nill will be the associate GM for the Face-Off squad and another assistant GM for the Olympic team under GM Doug Armstrong.
Don Sweeney will lead 🇨🇦 as GM at the 2025 @NHL 4 Nations Face-Off, working with associate GM Jim Nill.
Don Sweeney nommé DG du 🇨🇦 pour la Confrontation des 4 nations 2025 de la @LNH_FR; Jim Nill nommé DG associé.
— Hockey Canada (@HockeyCanada) April 12, 2024
“As we continue to prepare for international competition over the next two years, I am thrilled to have Don and Jim lead Team Canada at the 2025 NHL 4 Nations Face-Off, and to welcome these two experienced general managers to our management group for the 2026 Olympics,” Armstrong said in a news release.
Sweeney said he’s honored and appreciative of this opportunity to work with the Hockey Canada staff and players in a statement.
“We will work hard to put together the best teams to proudly represent Canada and to compete at the highest level to accomplish one goal,” Sweeney said.
Sweeney, a 57-year-old from St. Stephen, N.B., is in his ninth year as GM of the Bruins since being appointed in 2015. The team’s made the playoffs in eight of those years, making the Stanley Cup final in 2019 and winning six series in total. Sweeney was awarded the GM of the year in 2019.
Last season, Sweeney hired Montreal native Jim Montgomery as the Bruins’ newest coach. With them, the Bruins set NHL records for most wins (65) and points (135) in a season but were eliminated in the first round by the Florida Panthers. Montgomery also coached for the Stars under Nill for parts of two seasons before being fired, and he was an assistant coach for two seasons under Armstrong’s Blues.
That said, Hockey Canada said it’s expecting to announce the coaching staff and first six players for the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off in June.
Announced at NHL all-star weekend in February, the Face-Off will feature NHL players from Canada, Sweden, Finland, and the United States. In lieu of all-star weekend, a city in Canada and one in the U.S. will host the event in mid-February 2025, which are reported to be Montreal and Boston.
Related: Three Burning Questions Facing Team Canada After Choosing GM
Related: Crosby Would Love to Play in 2026 and 2030 Olympics – If He’s Still Good Enough
Related: Predicting a 2025 Team Canada World Cup of Hockey Roster
News Summary:
- Team Canada Names Bruins' Don Sweeney GM for 4 Nations Face-Off
- Check all news and articles from the latest NHL updates.