The Florida Panthers’ Aleksander Barkov last season became the first Finnish-born captain to lead a team to a Stanley Cup. So it was only natural that on Thursday he was named the captain for Team Finland in next month’s 4 Nations Face-Off,

Representing Finland as the team captain at the 4 Nations Face-Off will be Florida Panthers forward and captain Aleksander "Sasha" Barkov. The Panthers captain was the overwhelming favorite to be given the honor, and now the decision has been made official according to NHL insider Chris Johnston. He shared the news via his X account.

Barkov will lead fellow Finnish Cats Anton Lundell, Eetu Luostarinen and Niko Mikkola at tournament from Feb. 12-20

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Florida Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov will be donning the "C" for Finland at the 4 Nations Face-Off in February, according to TSN's Chris Johnston. More to come.

The 4 Nations Face-Off captains and leadership groups for Canada, Finland, Sweden and the U.S. must guide their teams to a win with little margin for error.

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Aleksander Barkov takes pride in wearing the 'C' as captain of the Florida Panthers. So, he appreciates the meaning of being able to also do it while representing his country. Barkov was named captain for Team Finland for the 4 Nations Face-Off on Thursday.

These days, there are only a few people in Finland who are more recognizable than Aleksander Barkov. Hockey is arguably the most-popular sport in Finland, and right now, it would seem that Barkov and the sport have become synonymous in the Suomi.