'Should Be Sid For Sure': Connor McDavid Can't Imagine Anyone Else As Team Canada's Captain
A matchup between Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid is always special.
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Friday's game between the Oilers and Penguins serves as something more: a preview for the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off, where Crosby and McDavid will play as teammates for the first time.
"I'm really looking forward to it," McDavid told reporters after practice on Thursday. "To play with Sid, to play with so many other guys, Nate [MacKinnon], Makar, great Canadian players."
McDavid, Crosby, MacKinnon, and Makar were among the first six players named to Team Canada in June.
As for right now, Crosby and McDavid are still on-ice rivals.
"It doesn't make any difference," McDavid said. "We still want to win, he still wants to win tomorrow."
That's doubly true right now because neither the Oilers nor the Penguins have gotten off to the start they wanted. We all know about the Oilers' 2-4-1 start, but it's been similarly tough in Pittsburgh.
The Penguins are 3-4-1 coming into Friday's game, having lost in the shootout to Calgary on Tuesday. They've allowed 4.25 goals per game, the third-most in the league. Tristan Jarry has already lost his grip on the starting goalie job, thanks to an .836 save percentage.
Their veteran stars are still scoring: Evgeni Malkin has 11 points in 8 games, while Crosby has one goal and 7 points. But both centres sit at -5 in the early going, continuing a noticeable decline in their defensive acumen over the years.
For his part, Connor McDavid isn't worried about a decline with Crosby.
"It doesn't seem like he's got any sign of slowing down," he said with a laugh.
Still, Team Canada in February might be McDavid's team more than Crosby's. There have even been discussions that McDavid might take on the mantle of "Captain Canada".
McDavid wasn't going to entertain any ideas of a changing of the guard, however.
"It should be Sid," he said when asked if it matters who wears the "C" for Canada in February. "It's just how it should be [...] it's just such a no-brainer."
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