Olympics: Tom Wilson handed big role with McDavid as Sidney Crosby gets his own line

I\u2019m a sports columnist for the Vancouver Sun and Province covering the in-and-outs of the city's favourite \u2014 and truly desperate \u2014 passion: the Vancouver Canucks. When not cataloguing the daily travails, ups and downs, of the Canucks, you'll find me occasionally weighing in on the Vancouver Whitecaps and B.C. Lions. I once wrote a story about a bolide \u2014 ask me about that \u2014 and Vancouver's most senior cobbler.

Postmedia is the only full-time professional journalism home I\u2019ve ever known: started at The Province in 2013, working initially as a web editor then as a digital reporter covering general news. On the sports beat since 2018.

From 2011 to 2014 I was a contributor to the popular hockey blog Canucks Army.\r\nEDUCATION

B.A. (Hons) History from UBC 2004, B.Ed. (Secondary Education) from UBC 2007. Certificate in Journalism from Langara College 2012.

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Team Canada captain Sidney Crosby will likely be playing on a third line with Mark Stone and Sam Reinhart at the 2026 Winter Games. Photo by Gregory Shamus /Getty ImagesArticle contentMILAN — The idea that Sidney Crosby would play as centre on his own line doesn’t seem like it should be revolutionary, but with Team Canada head coach Jon Cooper handed a boatload of opens at wing, that’s just what he appears set to do.

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And that means big things for both Tom Wilson and Nick Suzuki.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.Try refreshing your browser, ortap here to see other videos from our team.Play VideoArticle contentIn last year’s 4-Nations Faceoff tournament, Crosby skated as a left winger with Nathan MacKinnon, but with Cooper clearly seeing Wilson as a top-line winger and also wanting to put the immensely talented Macklin Celebrini with Connor McDavid, pushing Crosby to a line with Sam Reinhart and Mark Stone — how’s that for a third line? — was an easy choice.

Advertisement 1 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", function() { const template = document.getElementById('oop-ad-template'); if (template && !template.dataset.adInjected) { const clone = template.content.cloneNode(true); template.replaceWith(clone); if (template.parentElement) { template.parentElement.dataset.adInjected = "true"; } } });Article contentThis is, truly, a team stacked with talent at forward.

It’s Wilson, though, perhaps the most controversial choice for this team by the management team led by GM Doug Armstrong, who drew the most attention from the moment he was spotted skating alongside McDavid and Celebrini.

“We picked this team for a reason. I mean, this is the elite of elite in Canada,” Cooper said of the choices made, especially with Wilson. The lines he and his coaching staff have set to start are best-guesses, he noted. The roster is the best roster he believes they can ice; the lines will surely change.

“Some guys are forecheckers. Some guys aren’t. Some guys are puck possession guys and when you find that right mix — if anybody watched 4-Nations, the lineup we started against Sweden was not the lineup that finished against us four games later. So ultimately, you have to start somewhere.”

For his part, Wilson is excited by the possibility of playing with two speedsters in McDavid and Celebrini.

Tom Wilson, second from the left, could skate on Team Canada’s top line with Connor McDavid and Macklin Celebrini. Photo by Gregory Shamus /Getty ImagesArticle content“I’ve played against Macklin and Connor a lot and it’s not fun,” Wilson said with a smile. “Playing with them is a lot more fun. They’re so good with the puck. For me, I think it’s about, you know, go get it for them, get it to them and get open and they’ll do the rest.”

And while on the outside some might think Wilson would see his selection to Team Canada as some kind of validation of the way he plays hockey — an aggressive, on the edge style that maximizes his natural gift of an enormous frame, controlled with some impressive pure athleticism, but a style that has brought him plenty of criticism after heavy hits he’s thrown has landed him suspensions a half-dozen times and resulted in injuries to a number of opponents.

Off the ice Natalie Spooner is a TikTok star. On it she's one of Team Canada's heartbeats Five things to watch as the Canadian men's hockey team arrives for the 2026 Olympics Advertisement 1Story continues belowThis advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.document.addEventListener(`DOMContentLoaded`,function(){let template=document.getElementById(`oop-ad-template`);if(template&&!template.dataset.adInjected){let clone=template.content.cloneNode(!0);template.replaceWith(clone),template.parentElement&&(template.parentElement.dataset.adInjected=`true`)}});Article content“Honestly, I don’t think about that,” he responded to the idea that being picked was some sort of validation. “I think about pulling this jersey on and the pride and what it means to me. And just trying to make this country as proud as possible and trying to do whatever it takes for this team. I don’t think anybody in there is looking for validation. I don’t think anybody in there is looking to stand out. We’re looking to play for each other, depend on each other, and come together as a group and have success.”

pjohnston@postmedia.com

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Olympics: Tom Wilson handed big role with McDavid as Sidney Crosby gets his own line

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