Auston Matthews 'looking forward' to USA chants in do-or-die 4 Nations championship clash against rival Canada

Captain Auston Matthews will lead the United States into battle against Team Canada on Thursday night for the 4 Nations final in Boston. It will be a rematch of Saturday night's chaotic 3-1 USA win over Canada, which began with three fights in the first nine seconds of game action.

With so much at stake, expect the intensity to be through the roof between the two rival countries.

Matthews was asked what it would be like to play in a do-or-die game at TD Garden, but this time with the home crowd on his side. Leafslatest on X (formerly Twitter) shared his response.

"I’m looking forward to it, like you said," Matthews said. "I’ve been on the other side of that building a couple of times before, but it’s one of the best away rinks, in my opinion. The atmosphere is always great, so I’m excited to be on the right side this time. It’s going to be rocking, and I know I’m going to start getting chills when I hear those USA chants."

As a Toronto Maple Leaf, Auston Matthews has lost three Game 7s at TD Garden to the Boston Bruins. He hopes that this time, he will win an elimination game in the building where he has suffered so much heartache.

Auston Matthews returns from brief injury absence for the 4 Nations final

Auston Matthews is good to go for Thursday night's championship game against Team Canada.

The 27-year-old sat out Sunday night's 2-1 loss to Team Sweden due to upper body soreness. This sparked some concerns since Matthews has missed 15 games during the NHL season with a nagging upper-body injury.

However, it was revealed that the ailment was different from his previous injury and nothing too serious. Matthews returned to practice on Wednesday and will play on Thursday night.

Widely regarded as the best goal scorer in the world, Matthews has yet to find the back of the net in the tournament. Perhaps the Arizona native is saving it up for what could be the biggest game of his hockey career.

Team USA and Team Canada will face off on Thursday night for all the marbles in the final game of the 4 Nations Face-Off. The puck drops at 8 p.m. EST at TD Garden in Boston.