The result was the culmination of a midseason tournament that featured stars from Canada, Finland, Sweden and the United States — and a surprisingly political atmosphere.

Canada set up another politically charged ice hockey grudge match against the United States on Monday by beating Finland 5-3 to reach the final of the NHL Four Nations tournament.Finland pulled a goal back from Esa Lindell before a quickfire brace from Mikael Granlund made it 4-3 to set up a nervy finale.

It's hard to put a finger on the true stakes of Thursday night's 4 Nations Face-Off final in Boston. After all, this tournament didn't exist a year ago and, up until just about a week ago, was one people doubted anyone would care about -- including the players participating.