Canadian Coach Gives Sidney Crosby Divine Compliment

Team Canada coach Jon Cooper is the longest tenured coach in the NHL and has faced Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby many times, including the 2016 Eastern Conference Final, which Crosby won.

*Boston Hockey Now beat writer Andrew Fantucchio is covering the Four Nations Face-Off event for National Hockey Now and provided the quote.

Now, as the head coach of Canada at the Four Nations tourney (and next year at the Olympics), Cooper delivered some high praise for Canada’s captain, Crosby after they reached the Final by beating Team Finland.

“I’ve got a ton (of takeaways on how Crosby has dealt with younger players) and probably a lot more will come out after this tournament ends. You see somebody from afar, and then you don’t want to be disappointed when you meet them in person,” Cooper began. “You want to meet your hero and you want them to be your hero. Honestly, I think a lot of times it doesn’t happen. And how many times have you said, ‘Man, I wish (I hadn’t). You look at them in a certain light. The way that you look at Sidney Crosby is still the same light when you meet him.

“And he’s been he’s a true inspiration to all the young guys in the locker room and even older guys. He is–in our country–he walks on water and he is as humble as they come. You can see why he arguably is one of the most respected people in this game.”

Crosby, 37, is the oldest player in the tournament and leads the four-team tourney in scoring, too. In three games, he has five points with one goal. With some irony, the second leading scorer in the tournament is long-time Crosby winger Jake Guentzel, who has four points in two games prior to the Team USA game against Sweden on Monday night.

Canada beat Finland Monday afternoon to punch its ticket to the Four Nations Face-Off Final Thursday night against Team USA. The U.S. beat Canada 3-1 Saturday night at the Bell Centre in Montreal. The final will be held at TD Garden.