The plan for Auston Matthews is to be, well, Auston Matthews. On Thursday, Matthews was named the captain of Team USA for the 4 Nations Face-Off, the international best-on-best tournament that will pit the US, Canada, Sweden and Finland against each other in Montreal and Boston from Feb. 12-20.

Auston Matthews has never been able to represent the United States in best-on-best international hockey competition. It’s a situation many of the game’s top stars find themselves in, but that’s about to change at the 4 Nations Face-Off next month.

Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs has been named Captain for Team USA for the 4 Nations Face-Off. It will run from Feb. 12-20 in Montreal and Boston.

Captaining Canada is nothing new for Sidney Crosby. He did it at the 2014 Sochi Olympics and the 2016 World Cup of Hockey and led the team to titles in each of those tournaments.

Matthews was named captain of the Maple Leafs on Aug. 14, taking over for John Tavares, who passed along the role to star forward. Matthews is the 26th captain in the club's history and the first US-born player to wear the "C' for Toronto.

The hot streak comes at at perfect time for Matthews and the United States. The center, who grew up in Arizona, will join Team United States for the 4 Nations Face-Off in Montreal and Boston from Feb. 12-20 and begin play against Team Finland at Bell Centre on Feb. 13 (8 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, SN, TVAS).

As speculation rises over which players may decide to sit out the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off, Toronto Maple Leafs’ Auston Matthews will be suiting up for Team

Auston Matthews will serve as captain for the United States in the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off, and his team is the only one involved without a glaring injury question to answer.