Auston Matthews makes his feelings known about opening fights during USA vs Canada 4 Nations clash

Auston Matthews shared his thoughts on the opening fights during the USA vs. Canada game in the 4 Nations Face-Off. The United States defeated Canada 3-1 at Bell Centre on Saturday, securing a spot in the final.

Talking about the fights, Auston Matthews said that it gave Team USA energy and helped them start strong.

“I mean, you had a sense that, you know, Definitely wanted to come out and send a message right away," Matthews said. "And, I mean, those three guys stepping up like that—those guys are as hard as it gets when it comes to just playing the game hard and with an edge. And, you know, just to get the game started like that, I thought it gave our bench a lot of energy, a lot of life. We just went from there.”

The game started with three fights in the first nine seconds, showing the intensity of the rivalry. At 00:02, Matthew Tkachuk fought Brandon Hagel. Hagel had the upper hand before the referees stopped the fight. At 00:03, Brady Tkachuk overpowered Sam Bennett. At 00:09, J.T. Miller cross-checked Colton Parayko. Parayko used his height to control the fight.

The crowd of 21,105 watched a physical and competitive game. Connor McDavid scored first for Canada at 5:31 of the first period. The U.S. tied it at 10:15 with a Jake Guentzel goal. At 13:33 of the second period, Dylan Larkin gave the U.S. a 2-1 lead. Canada pushed in the third period but couldn’t score. Guentzel secured the 3-1 win with an empty-net goal at 18:41.

Auston Matthews previously talked about his bond with Connor McDavid

Before the Canada vs. USA game, Jonas Siegel of The Athletic interviewed Auston Matthews about his relationship with Connor McDavid. Matthews said their bond has grown, and they respect each other. He enjoys talking about hockey with McDavid and learning from him.

“I definitely think it’s evolved, and I think there’s a mutual respect and appreciation for one another," Matthews said. "I know for myself, spending time with him, I always find - hockey, for the most part, we talk about a lot of stuff - but I just find getting his perspective on different things is pretty cool.

"You learn a lot just by bouncing things off of each other. He is who he is because of the work ethic he puts in, and he’s obviously a special talent with consistency and everything like that...I’m always learning different things.”

Auston Matthews has stated how much he values competing against McDavid and learning from his experience.