Finland is making a goaltending change at the 4 Nations Face-Off.
Vancouver Canucks goalie Kevin Lankinen will start Saturday against Sweden after Nashville Predators netminder Juuse Saros gave up six goals on 32 shots in a loss to the United States on Thursday, coach Antti Pennanen told reporters Friday.
The Finns need a win to stay in the hunt for a berth in the final.
Lankinen is 19-8-7 with a 2.53 goals-against average and .905 save percentage across 34 appearances for the Canucks this season. He was the primary starter for the beginning of the season with Thatcher Demko battling back from injury.
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4 Nations Face-Off on Sportsnet
The inaugural edition of the 4 Nations Face-Off is here with the top players from Canada, Sweden, Finland and the United States going head-to-head in the highly anticipated best-on-best event. Watch all the games on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+.
Saros was able to keep the Finns in the game for the first two periods against the U.S., but then the Americans exploded for four goals in the third in the 6-1 rout.
“I think (Saros) was really good the first 40 minutes, but 6-1, so we need to do something,” Pennanen told reporters when asked about the decision. “And Kevin, he has played good games lately, so that was behind that decision.”
With all teams through one game of the tournament, Finland sits last in the 4 Nations standings with zero points. Sweden also lost to Canada but earned one point because the loss was in OT.
You can watch Finland take on Sweden on Saturday live on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+ starting at 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT, followed by Canada versus USA at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT.
