USA and Canada Set for Rematch in 4 Nations Championship

After falling to the Mike Sullivan-coached Team USA on Saturday, Canada had to beat Finland in regulation on Monday if they wanted a rematch in the 4 Nations Face-Off championship.

Sidney Crosby came up clutch with a goal and an assist in a 5-3 victory to secure what will surely be another epic matchup between the two countries, set for Thursday at 8 PM, this time at Boston’s TD Garden instead of Montreal’s Bell Centre. It will be broadcast on ESPN, ESPN+, Sportsnet and TVA Sports.

“I think coming off that emotional game we came off of the game before, had to re-invest here. Thought we did a great job of that,” Crosby said. “Got some big plays from a lot of different guys and different guys stepped up when we needed it. That’s what you need to win consistently, and we’re going to need another great effort here the next one.”

Crosby made a terrific play in the neutral zone to help Canada win possession and scored an empty netter to give the group some much-needed breathing room. Canada had been up 4-0 before Finland scored three unanswered.

“We got off to a great start, some big goals early, and we were playing on our toes,” Crosby said. “I thought we played pretty solid throughout, probably guilty of sitting back a little bit there late, and they capitalized. But give them credit. They didn't give up. They kept pushing. Tough team to play against. So, it was important to get the lead.”

Crosby added a beautiful helper earlier in the game to give him two points on the day, and currently leads the entire tournament in scoring with five points (1G-4A) despite being the oldest player there at 37 years old. Team Canada head coach Jon Cooper, who steered the Lightning to back-to-back Stanley Cup championships, gave great insight into how everyone in their group feels about Crosby.

“You see somebody from afar, and you don’t want to be disappointed when you meet them in person,” Cooper said. “You want to meet your hero and you want them to be your hero. Honestly, a lot of times that doesn’t happen. How many times have you said oh, man, I wish you’d look at them in a certain light? Well, the light that you look at Sidney Crosby in is still the same light when you meet him. He’s a true inspiration to all the young guys in our locker room, and even older guys. In our country, he walks on water, and he is as humble as they can. You can see why he is arguably one of the most respected people in this game.”

While this is the first time Cooper has gotten to coach Crosby and been asked about him from that perspective, Sullivan has had that privilege for years, often saying he’s run out of superlatives to describe him as a person and a player, and the impact he has.

Sullivan knew going into the event that coaching against his captain – serving in that same role for Team Canada – would be an incredible challenge.

“I'm so used to having him on our bench – and I kind of like it that way. I would prefer he would be on our bench,” Sullivan joked back in December. “He's an elite player, and he's a guy that just knows how to win. He'll elevate his game like he always does when the stakes are high.”

Sullivan and his staff, which includes first-year Penguins assistant coach David Quinn, did a terrific job in game planning against Crosby in the first matchup. They’ll have to do more of the same on Thursday if they want the same result, with the Canadians looking to adjust their own strategies in hopes of a different result.

“Just understanding the challenge, trying to learn from the last game we played against the U.S.,” Crosby said. “Knowing what we’re up against... I think it’s an opportunity, and we did a great job today of being a little bit better, learning from some things, and we’ll look to do that Thursday."