Team Canada's hockey roster for the Olympics is one of the toughest lists to crack in all of sports. The NHL has been depriving the world of seeing the best-on-best hockey at the Olympics since 2018, but the world's best will all converge in Italy in February for a battle for world supremacy. If last year's 4 Nations Face-Off was any indication, it should be a must-watch. Two players, Connor Bedard and Macklin Celebrini, are hoping they'll be part of the action this time around after missing out last year.
Team Canada's general manager, Doug Armstrong, doesn't have an easy job. He caught up with insider Pierre LeBrun on Monday to talk about the tough decisions he is facing, and reiterated that both Bedard and Celebrini are in the mix.
“There's no age limit, at the high end or the low end, but I'm going to say some of the guys at the low end (youngsters) have really … they've found us,” Armstrong said. “And now we're going to really home in on those guys. There's so many good young players in this game. Connor Bedard has been playing some great hockey right now. He's taken his game up to a level it wasn't at last year. Celebrini has continued what he showed last year.”
Both players are in the top five in points as the season approaches the end of the first quarter. With the way they are playing, it's hard to see them falling off too far before the roster selection on New Year's Eve. The young stars deserve a spot, but will Team Canada's front office have an appetite to leave off some proven veterans to make room on the Olympics roster? If basing it on past Canadian roster decisions, the answer is no, but Bedard and Celebrini aren't going down without a fight.
