It's painful to watch as an American, but credit to Canada for knowing that point shots suck, and for winning the first-ever 4 Nations Face-Off with a gorgeous team goal.
Let’s break down the clinching goal:
Cale Makar
Cale Makar can work the point in the offensive zone like very few can. But instead of forcing the puck toward the net, he defers, possibly alluding to the pre-faceoff conversation with Mitch Marner, and rims the puck hard behind the net.
Mitchell Marner
Marner mentioned that Canada had talked about finding soft spots/quiet areas away from the American defensemen. He works off the net to find that space. This was clearly a pre-planned spot.
We talked about the value Marner places on keeping ice vision. He talked about it again here with TSN.
Notice the route the American defenseman (Adam Fox) takes to cover Marner. This results in Auston Matthews stepping out to help, which frees Connor McDavid in the slot.
Marner is the ultimate problem creator. On the second goal for Canada, he created a problem and asked a question of the defense. Plus, it was an overlap pattern off the rush, with the puck receiver driving into space behind the defense, both things that I love.
Connor McDavid
While McDavid is “skilled,” plenty of the movements we see on this goal could have been made by a lesser player. He patiently waits but is not inactive. He makes minor adjustments to find the passing lane to make the pass from Marner possible.
While being technically savvy is great, we must remember that decision-making and reading the game well are equally critical.
Dive into the further reading in this article, the further reading below, or the search feature to continually grow your game sophistication and understanding.
Further Reading
How to Poke-Check Better with Jared Spurgeon, Nicklas Lidstrom, & Cale Makar
Modern Hockey: Offensive Rush Tactics with Defenseman Roman Josi