Tonight is without a doubt the most hyped-up hockey game that we’ve gotten since Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final last June.

Canada vs. USA from the hockey cathedral that is the Bell Centre in Montreal. It really doesn’t get any better than this

Tensions will be high and the boo-birds will be out in full force tonight. Despite not having a true best-on-best meeting between these two sides since the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, the rivalry between these two hockey giants is alive and well.

It’s worth noting that Finland’s overtime victory over Sweden earlier today was a massive break for Team Canada. With Finland now sitting at three points and Sweden stuck at just two, Canada can clinch a spot in the final with a regulation victory over Finland on Monday, regardless of what the outcome is tonight vs Team USA, who are sitting at three points.

If Team USA wins in regulation and Canada doesn’t get a point, they can still get to five points with a regulation win over Finland in their final round-robin game. That means that even if Sweden were to beat Team USA in regulation, they could only get to five points. In that scenario, Canada and Sweden would both be at five points and the Canadians hold the first tiebreaker, which is head-to-head victories.

Either way, you know Canada will want to not leave things up to that final game and clinch their spot tonight with a big win over their bitter rivals. Here are three storylines that I think will play a massive role in tonight’s hockey game.

Matthew and Brady Tkachuk have stolen the show early on in this tournament. The brothers were undoubtedly the most impactful American skaters in their 6-1 win over Finland on Thursday night. Between the two of them: four goals, 13 shots on goal, and 11 total hits. Absolute dominance in every facet of the game.

Canada is going to need to find a way to negate their impact as much as possible. That’ll be difficult to do.

I know there’s been a lot of talk about Canada’s newly formed third line that will feature Brad Marchand, Sam Bennett, and Seth Jarvis. Could Jon Cooper use that trio as a way to try to match their energy? It’s entirely possible, but I’m not sure if it’s the best idea.

All three of those players are very talented but they aren’t on the level of the Tkachuks and their centreman Jack Eichel. Could they bring the same type of pest energy? Sure, but my fear would be that the American trio would dominate them when it comes to the actual hockey.

If I were Head Coach Jon Cooper, who does have the benefit of last change tonight, I would avoid hard-matching that line against the Tkachuks.

Instead, I would try to go power on power with the MacKinnon, Crosby and Stone line. If the Americans want to run around and try to rattle you, let them. Have your top line go out there, ignore all the extracurriculars, and let them try to win the battle on the scoreboard.

Speaking of Canada’s top-six, if Cooper does decide to go “power vs power” with his first matchup, that suddenly puts Connor McDavid’s line in a very big spot. Him finding a way to dominate his matchup would go a long way in boosting Canada’s chances of winning this game.

I didn’t think either one of Mitch Marner or Sam Reinhart were bad in Canada’s first game and there were a few moments where you could see the vision that Cooper had for this line. Marner’s vision and ability to hit McDavid in stride with passes created some looks for #97.

Still, I stand by my original take on this trio: Marner isn’t a great stylistic fit with McDavid. I think he works best when he’s on a line with someone who can get in on the forecheck and create turnovers. Like Zach Hyman.

The turning point for Team USA in their opener was their decision to unite the Tkachuks. Head Coach Mike Sullivan took a chance and it paid off.

If Canada’s offence isn’t buzzing early, I don’t wonder if we see Cooper switch things up. Personally, I’d love to see Brad Marchand get a look next to McDavid. Not only is he good at creating turnovers but he can finish chances off the rush. He could work well with a high-flying playmaker.

Canada is turning right back to Jordan Binnington in this game after he allowed three goals on 26 shots against Sweden.

I didn’t love any of the goals that he allowed but he came through in a big way in overtime and I think going back to him is smart. Could Adin Hill potentially give Canada better results? I suppose, but that’s far from a guarantee and I like the idea of giving Binnington a chance to get more comfortable playing behind this Canadian team.

I also think his swagger and confidence is a big plus for this matchup.

Canada doesn’t have a star to turn to between the pipes and either option comes with some risk. I think giving Binnington a chance to build off the opening game is a safer bet. We’ll see if it ends up being the right move as being the best goalie in this matchup is going to be tough considering one of the best goalies of this generation, Connor Hellebuyck, will be staring him down from the other end of the ice.

Canada might not be able to get four past him like they did against Filip Gustavsson and that means Binnington will need to up his game.