Kyle Connor, who opened the game as the No. 2 left wing, had a quiet start against Finland. Mike Sullivan, like all three coaches, has to ride the line of letting linemates settle in or change them up in search of improvement. In the second period, the Team USA coach went for the latter, dropping Connor to the third line in favor of Brady Tkachuk to ride with brother Matthew Tkachuk and Jack Eichel.
The move worked. After robust wall work by Connor and third-line mates J.T. Miller and Matt Boldy, Brock Faber settled the puck at the right point. As Boldy went in front, Faber sent a sifter on net. Boldy gained net-front position on Nikolas Matinpalo, stretched his stick across his body and got a piece of his Minnesota Wild teammate’s shot to deflect it past Saros, giving the U.S. a 2-1 lead.
It wasn’t the Americans’ only adjustment. Sullivan also changed his second and third defense pairs. He moved Faber up with Jaccob Slavin and dropped Adam Fox to the No. 3 pairing with Noah Hanifin.
How Team USA blew out Finland in 4 Nations Face-Off win: Takeaways
