Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche and Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers are among the first six players selected for Canada’s national team for the 2025 Four Nations Tournament on Friday.
Canada, the United States, Sweden and Finland will compete in the tournament, which will be held from Feb. 12-20 at TD Garden in Boston and the Bell Centre in Montreal.
“Obviously I’m very excited to represent Canada against the best,” Crosby said. “It’s been a long time since I’ve had the opportunity to do that. I think if you talk to all the players that were mentioned today, they’re excited. It’s been a long time.”
They will be joined by Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar and forwards Brad Marchand (Boston Bruins) and Brayden Point (Tampa Bay Lightning). The rest of the roster will be made up of 23 NHL players (20 skaters, three goalies) and will be announced later this year.
Crosby led the Penguins with 94 points (42 goals, 52 assists) in 82 games. It was the 36-year-old forward’s 19th season with at least 1.00 points per game, tying him with Wayne Gretzky for the most in NHL history.
A three-time Stanley Cup champion (2009, 2016, 2017), Crosby ranks 10th all-time with 1,596 points (592 goals, 1,004 assists) in 1,272 games since being selected first overall by the Penguins in the 2005 NHL Draft. The Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia native is a two-time Hart Trophy winner as the NHL’s Most Valuable Player (2006-07, 2013-14), a two-time Art Ross Trophy winner as the league’s scoring leader (2006-07, 2013-14) and a two-time Conn Smythe Trophy winner as the Stanley Cup Playoffs MVP (2016, 2017).
MacKinnon was second in the NHL with 140 points (51 goals, 89 assists) in 82 games this season, earning him the Hart Trophy and the Ted Lindsay Award, awarded to the most outstanding player as voted for by the NHL Players Association membership. The 28-year-old forward from Halifax, Nova Scotia, had 14 points (four goals, 10 assists) in 11 playoff games.
Since being selected first overall by the Avalanche in the 2013 NHL Draft, MacKinnon has accumulated 899 points (335 goals, 564 assists) in 791 regular season games and 114 points (48 goals, 66 assists) in 88 playoff games, including 24 points (13 goals, 11 assists) in 20 games in helping the Avalanche win the Stanley Cup in 2022.
MacKinnon said he’s talked recently with Crosby about line combinations and the possibility of playing on the same line.
“We went on a golf trip and he mentioned it,” Crosby said, “I think it was the first day. He was just asking my thoughts. … I had a lot of fun getting the chance to play with him at the 2015 World Championship. It’s been a while since then.”
McDavid tied Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov for the NHL lead with 100 assists. They became the first players with at least 100 assists in a season since Gretzky (122) in 1990-91. McDavid was third in the league with 132 points, the seventh time he has reached 100 points in nine NHL seasons.
McDavid, 27, of Richmond Hill, Ontario, led the NHL with 42 points (eight goals, 34 assists) in 25 playoff games, helping the Oilers reach the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2006. McDavid became the sixth player to win the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP from a losing team. McDavid’s 34 assists are the most by a player in a single playoff game since Mario Lemieux had 44 points (16 goals, 28 assists) in 23 games with the Penguins in 1991.
McDavid has 982 points (335 goals, 647 assists) in 645 regular season games and 117 points (37 goals, 80 assists) in 74 playoff games since being selected first overall by the Oilers in the 2015 NHL Draft. He is a three-time Hart Trophy winner (2016-17, 2020-21, 2022-23) and was named a finalist for the award this season.
“And knowing a little bit further down the line (about making the roster) means we can have some conversations and prepare a little bit,” Crosby said. “I think the guys have that anticipation of getting ready for the season, but also the motivation knowing they’re going to be included. I think that’s great for everybody.”
Makar is second among NHL defencemen with 90 points (21 goals, 69 assists) in 77 games this season and has 15 points (five goals, 10 assists) in 11 playoff games.
The 25-year-old Calgary native was a finalist for the Norris Trophy, awarded to the NHL’s best defenceman, for the fourth consecutive year, winning the award in 2021-22, the same season he also won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP when the Avalanche won the Stanley Cup. He led the postseason with 29 points (eight goals, 21 assists) in 20 games, setting an Avalanche/Quebec Nordiques defenceman record.
Makar, selected by the Avalanche in the first round (4th overall) of the 2017 NHL Draft, has recorded 336 points (86 goals, 250 assists) in 315 regular season games and 80 points (21 goals, 59 assists) in 72 playoff games.
In his first season as Bruins captain, Marchand was second on the team with 67 points (29 goals, 38 assists) in 82 regular season games and had 10 points (3 goals, 7 assists) in 11 playoff games.
The 36-year-old forward, born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, has 929 points (401 goals, 528 assists) in 1,029 regular season games and 138 points (56 goals, 82 assists) in 157 playoff games, including 19 points (11 goals, eight assists) in 25 games helping the Bruins win the Stanley Cup in 2011. Boston selected him in the third round (71st overall) of the 2006 NHL Draft.
Point was second on the Lightning with 90 points (46 goals, 44 assists) in 81 regular season games and had five points (two goals, three assists) in five playoff games.
The 28-year-old Calgary native was selected by the Lightning in the third round (79th overall) of the 2014 NHL Draft and has recorded 553 points (264 goals, 289 assists) in 580 regular season games and 87 points (42 goals, 45 assists) in 87 playoff games, including a total of 56 points (28 goals, 28 assists) in 46 games in helping the Lightning win the Stanley Cup in 2020 and 2021.
Don Sweeney of the Boston Bruins will serve as general manager in Canada, while Jon Cooper of the Tampa Bay Lightning will be coach.
Canada will play Sweden on Feb. 12 at the Bell Centre, USA on Feb. 15 at the Bell Centre and Finland on Feb. 17 at TD Garden.
