Canada HC Has High Hopes For Olympics

Team Canada's head coach had a successful 4 Nations Face-Off, capped off with a Gold Medal, but still wants to make sure the team is even better in the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Feb 15, 2025; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; [Imagn Images direct customers only] Team Canada head coach Jon Cooper in the first period during a 4 Nations Face-Off ice hockey game against Team United States at the Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-Imagn Images / Eric Bolte-Imagn Images

Team Canada had a successful 4 Nations Face-Off tournament, finishing with a Gold Medal, after defeating USA 3-2 in overtime, in a revenge game. The Americans beat Canada during the preliminary round by a score of 3-1, which has head coach Jon Cooper adamant on making sure the team is even better and more prepared for the 2026 Winter Olympic games in Italy.

Jon Cooper can always be relied upon for a great analogy. 🎯🇨🇦 pic.twitter.com/7nBQdbXcaD

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) August 28, 2025

While Canada was successful in the end, Cooper doesn't appear satisfied with the fact that Canada had games that were too close for comfort. Cooper likely doesn't look much into the fact that pundits had the belief that Canada was done after their loss to the Americans.

But the fact that Canada's roster will be loaded with talented players, just like it was during the Four Nations, a tournament where they didn't dominate, appears to be motivation to make sure the next version of Canada performs even better.

Nobody through the hockey world expected Canada to stroll through the tournament without any real challenges, but from a coach's perspective anything that can be done to make the team more of a threat, will be addressed.

The fact that this could be the final time that captain Sidney Crosby will represent Canada on the Olympic stage will already have the team feeling very motivated. With the likeliest players to take the torch and help Canada remain a threat for Olympic Gold after Sid is done, Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon will be locked-in to help Crosby go out on top.

Feb 15, 2025; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; [Imagn Images direct customers only] Team Canada forward Nathan MacKinnon (29) and teammate forward Sidney Crosby (87) prepare for a face-off against Team United States in the second period during a 4 Nations Face-Off ice hockey game at the Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-Imagn Images / Eric Bolte-Imagn Images

Canada will presumably have a cast similar to the one they iced in the 4 Nations Face-Off, with players who were left off the team vying for a role closely behind. All signs point to the team being as competitive as ever, and Cooper's comments ensure that the team will be well-coached with a hunger to leave no doubt they are the top dogs.

The level of competition is only going to increase, as there will be 12 teams competing for Gold, and who better to continue leading behind the bench than Cooper? With two Stanley Cup rings under his belt, along with success at every level that he has coached at, he has the credentials.

Czechia, Germany, Slovakia and Switzerland will be pushing hard to upset the big four — Canada, USA, Sweden and Finland — which will present plenty of intrigue and a great test for Cooper's squad.

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