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 named to the Canada team for the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off on Friday.
Canada, the United States, Sweden and Finland will play in the tournament, scheduled for Feb. 12-20 at TD Garden in Boston and Bell Centre in Montreal.
Joining them will be Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar and forwards Brad Marchand (Boston Bruins) and Brayden Point (Tampa Bay Lightning). The remainder of the roster, which will consist of 23 NHL players (20 skaters, three goalies) will be named later this year.
Crosby led the Penguins with 94 points (42 goals, 52 assists) in 82 games. It was the 19th season the 36-year-old forward has averaged at least 1.00 points per game, tying Wayne Gretzky for the most in NHL history.
A three-time Stanley Cup champion (2009, 2016, 2017), Crosby is 10th all-time with 1,596 points (592 goals, 1,004 assists) in 1,272 games since being selected by the Penguins with the No. 1 pick of the 2005 NHL Draft. Among his honors, the native of Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia, has won the Hart Trophy as NHL most valuable player twice (2006-07, 2013-14), the Art Ross Trophy as the League’s scoring leader twice (2006-07, 2013-14) and the Conn Smythe Trophy as MVP of the Stanley Cup Playoffs twice (2016, 2017).
MacKinnon was second in the NHL this season with 140 points (51 goals, 89 assists) in 82 games, and won the Hart Trophy and the Ted Lindsay Award, given to the most outstanding player as voted by members of the NHL Players’ Association. The 28-year-old forward, a native of Halifax, Nova Scotia, also had 14 points (four goals, 10 assists) in 11 playoff games.
Since being selected by the Avalanche with the No. 1 pick of the 2013 NHL Draft, MacKinnon has 899 points (335 goals, 564 assists) in 791 regular-season games, and 114 points (48 goals, 66 assists) in 88 playoff games. That includes 24 points (13 goals, 11 assists) in 20 games to help the Avalanche win the Stanley Cup in 2022.
McDavid tied Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov for the NHL lead with 100 assists; they’re 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 in nine NHL seasons he’s reached 100 points.
The 27-year-old native of Richmond Hill, Ontario, also led the NHL with 42 points (eight goals, 34 assists) in 25 playoff games to help the Oilers reach the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2006. He became the sixth player to win the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoffs MVP from a losing team. McDavid’s 34 assists were the most by a player in a single playoff run, and the most points since Mario Lemieux had 44 (16 goals, 28 assists) in 23 games for the Penguins in 1991.
Since being selected by the Oilers with the No. 1 pick of the 2015 NHL Draft, McDavid has 982 points (335 goals, 647 assists) in 645 regular-season games and 117 points (37 goals, 80 assists) in 74 playoff games. He’s a three-time Hart Trophy winner (2016-17, 2020-21, 2022-23) and is a finalist for the award this season.
Makar was second among NHL defensemen with 90 points (21 goals, 69 assists) in 77 games this season, and had 15 points (five goals, 10 assists) in 11 playoff games.
The 25-year-old, who was born in Calgary, was a finalist for the Norris Trophy as the best defenseman in the NHL for the fourth straight season; he won 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. His 29 points (eight goals, 21 assists) in 20 games led the postseason and set a record for Avalanche/Quebec Nordiques defensemen.
Selected by Avalanche in the first round (No. 4) of the 2017 NHL Draft, Makar has 336 points (86 goals, 250 assists) in 315 regular-season games and 80 points (21 goals, 59 assists) in 72 playoff games.
Marchand, in his first season as Bruins captain, was second on the team with 67 points (29 goals, 38 assists) in 82 regular-season games, and had 10 points (three goals, seven assists) in 11 playoff games.
The 36-year-old forward, who was 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. That includes 19 points (11 goals, eight assists) in 25 games to help the Bruins win the Stanley Cup in 2011. Boston selected him in the third round (No. 71) 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 native of Calgary was selected by the Lightning in the third round (No. 79) of the 2014 NHL Draft, and has 553 points (264 goals, 289 assists) in 580 regular-season games and 87 points (42 goals, 45 assists) in 87 playoff games. That includes a combined 56 points (28 goals, 28 assists) in 46 games to help the Lighting win the Stanley Cup in 2020 and 2021.
Don Sweeney of the Boston Bruins is Canada’s general manager, and Jon Cooper of the Tampa Bay Lightning will be the coach.
Canada will play Sweden at Bell Centre on Feb. 12, the United States at Bell Centre on Feb. 15 and Finland at TD Garden on Feb. 17.
Christine Lake is a sports fanatic who lives and breathes athletics. With an extensive background in sports journalism, he covers everything from major league championships to grassroots sports events. When she’s not on the field or at the stadium, you’ll find Christine coaching youth sports teams.
