Sidney Crosby will never grow tired of donning the Maple Leaf sweater. Ahead of the 2026 IIHF World Championship, he has been added to Hockey Canada’s National Men’s Team, making the Great White North an even bigger favorite to win it all. As exciting as his addition is, however, it does beg the question of whether it changes the original plans to have Macklin Celebrini—who is coming off a stellar NHL season—captain the Canadian delegation in Switzerland.
“It’s not yet clear if Sidney Crosby’s decision to join Canada at the worlds will alter plans for Macklin Celebrini to wear the ‘C,’ but needless to say, there’s lots of excitement about his addition to the roster,” Chris Johnston wrote on his X account.
Either way, Celebrini will welcome Crosby, who took him under his wing during the 2026 Olympics, with open arms. The duo—like Hockey Canada as a whole—will be out for revenge after the heartbreaking defeat in the gold-medal game against Team USA in Milan, Italy.
Crosby may not want to strip Celebrini of the ‘C’
With Sid the Kid’s addition to the roster, Celebrini and Crosby may find themselves in a bidding battle in which each side is actually rooting for the other to be captain. It’s often believed that as long as Crosby is playing, no one has a stronger case to be ‘Captain Canada.’
Macklin Celebrini during the 2026 Winter Olympic games
However, knowing Crosby, it’s plausible he would push for Celebrini to captain the team. After all, Celebrini was already named captain, and demoting him to an alternate role may not be the best look for Canada—nor something Crosby would want to orchestrate sub rosa.
Potential resolution by Hockey Canada
As it stands, Canada has named Celebrini as captain with Ryan O’Reilly and John Tavares serving as alternates. Perhaps the most reasonable—and likely—outcome is for Canada to add a third alternate captain, allowing Crosby to wear a letter while also giving Celebrini valuable experience as the leader of the national team.
It’d make sense. After all, Crosby won’t play forever—though it often feels that way—and someday a new captain will have to be named. There may be no better candidate than the 19-year-old from North Vancouver, who has grown accustomed to shattering records left and right.
However, that same argument about Crosby eventually hanging up the skates could also be used to support his case. Because someday he will no longer represent Hockey Canada, it may be best to let him wear the ‘C’ whenever possible, because nobody knows which tournament will be his last.
Crosby replaces Barzal
Shortly after Team Canada announced Matthew Barzal would step down from the 2026 IIHF World Championship due to a minor pre-existing injury, Crosby’s addition was confirmed. Thus, Crosby’s call-up was an emergency one, as the Canadians lost a valuable member of the team ahead of the international tournament.
The Pittsburgh Penguins captain accepted the invitation after his NHL season was cut short by a first-round elimination at the hands of the Philadelphia Flyers. For a born competitor like Crosby, there’s no better medicine for that kind of heartbreak than jumping right back into the action of another high-stakes competition with his country.
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