Crosby 'good to go' for 4 Nations after skating on second line in practice

Team Canada captain Sidney Crosby participated in the team's first practice on Monday, and told reporters afterwards he is 'good to go' for the 4 Nations Face-Off.

Crosby worked at centre on a line with Mark Stone and Nathan MacKinnon during the session. Sam Reinhart, Connor McDavid and Mitch Marner formed Canada's top line. Seth Jarvis skated with Brayden Point and Brad Marchand and Brandon Hagel joined Tampa Bay Lightning teammate Anthony Cirelli on a line with Sam Bennett.  Philadelphia Flyers forward Travis Konecny did not take part in Team Canada's practice due to illness.

On defence, Devon Toews and Cale Makar formed the top pair, with Shea Theodore paired with Drew Doughty and Josh Morrissey with Colton Parayko. Travis Sanheim was the extra defenceman in the opening practice.

The 37-year-old Crosby's status has been in question due to an upper-body injury suffered last week while playing with the Pittsburgh Penguins against the New Jersey Devils. Crosby has practiced in a limited fashion since the injury but missed both of the Penguins' final two games before the 4 Nations break.

TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun was encouraged by what he saw from Crosby in practice. "Number one he's shooting pucks in practice, that's literally something he was trying not do while coming back from this injury with Pittsburgh."

"He was flying, he was shooting pucks, it looked like just another day at the office for number 87," LeBrun said.

The most experienced member of the 4 Nations roster by a long shot is Crosby. The native of Cole Harbour, NS twice led Canada to gold in the Olympics, and his 'Golden Goal' in Vancouver in 2010 stands as an all-time goal in the annals of Team Canada history.

Crosby has 17 goals and 41 assists over 55 games with the Penguins in 2024-25, his 20th season with the team. Pittsburgh sits second last in the Metropolitan Division and seem like longshots to make the playoffs.

"It means a lot to Sid, it means a lot to everyone around here, it's an exciting tournament," McDavid said of Crosby joining the team.

"He's one of the best players to ever play the sport," Marchand added. "It's obviously great to have him here, such a great leader and great guy off the ice. Definitely great to have him here, definitely would've been different without him."

"What he's done for Team Canada, what he means for Team Canada is pretty special," Marner said.

Jon Cooper, the two-time Stanley Cup-winning head coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning, was chosen to be head coach for Team Canada. Following Tampa Bay's final game before the tournament, Cooper was tight-lipped about his star's potential involvement, refusing to answer any questions.

"To be clear, [Team Canada management was] going to see how he felt after practice today before they made that final call before the 5p.m. ET deadline for the rosters - let's be real, is anyone telling Crosby he's going back on a plane?" LeBrun said. 

Which goaltender is Canada going to rely on for 4 Nations?

Jordan Binnington of the St. Louis Blues, Adin Hill of the Vegas Golden Knights and Sam Montembeault of the Montreal Canadiens are the three goaltenders Canada has chosen to roster for the 4 Nations Face-Off.

Hill was the first to take the ice at Monday's opening practice, but goaltender usage has been an important talking point leading up to the tournament.

Cooper says he doesn't expect to be used in a rotation, TSN's Kenzie Lalonde reports. 

Cooper will make his choice for Wednesday's starting goalie on Monday night, according to Lalonde.

Montembeault has been the busiest goaltender of the three this season, playing in 42 games with the Canadiens, but Hill has been the most consistent performer. In 34 games, the Comox, BC native has a 2.64 goals-against average and a 0.900 save percentage. 

Top-line combination of Marner, McDavid could turn heads

McDavid centered Canada's top line at the first practice, flanked by Reinhart to the left and Marner on the right side.

"I'm not surprised [Marner was put on the top line], Cooper loves Marner," TSN Leafs Reporter Mark Masters said of Toronto' Marner being placed on the top line. "[Cooper] coached Marner at the World Championship (in 2017, where Canada won silver), every time the Leafs and Lightning play each other he is raving about Marner, so I'm not surprised to see him in a prominent role."

Marner, 27, has 16 goals and 71 points for the Maple Leafs this season. He is on pace to set a new career-high in points this season in his ninth year in the NHL.

Masters spoke to McDavid while the Leafs were in Edmonton at the beginning of February and said he felt McDavid had some genuine excitement about potentially playing with Marner. Masters indicated that McDavid felt Marner reminded him of Leon Draisaitl, the NHL's leading scorer and a teammate of McDavid's with the Oilers.

"It's interesting he found a comparable there [between Marner and Draisaitl], but I'm not surprised to see Marner up on the top line," Masters said.

Canada's top power play features a ton of firepower

Canada deployed their two power-play units in practice on Monday. The top unit features superstars Sidney Crosby, Connor McDavid, Sam Reinhart and Nathan MacKinnon, with Cale Makar anchoring defensively.

The second power-play unit includes Mark Stone, Brayden Point and Mitch Marner, with defencemen Josh Morrissey and Shea Theodore rounding out the group.

McDavid, Reinhart, MacKinnon and Makar all rank in the top 15 in points in the NHL this season - MacKinnon leads all players with 87 points in 57 games.

Some NHL teammates sticking together on lines

Cooper deployed some NHL teammates as linemates in the opening practice session.

Hagel and Cirelli, who play under Cooper together in Tampa Bay, skated on the left side and in centre respectively on the fourth offensive line.

Teammates from the Avalanche Makar and Toews combined to form the top defensive pairing.

Makar earned a Norris Trophy after the 2021-22 season and finished in the top 3 in voting for the award each of the past three seasons. He has 22 goals and 63 points in 57 games with the Avalanche this year - both of which lead all defencemen.

Florida Panthers teammates Bennett and Reinhart were not paired in an offensive line, as Bennett skated on the fourth line.

Canada opens the tournament Wednesday against Sweden in Montreal, with the first practices for all four teams set for Monday.