STOCKHOLM — Sidney Crosby is once again taking up the mantle of Captain Canada. The Pittsburgh Penguins superstar from Cole Harbour, N.S., has been named captain of Canada’s team at the world hockey championship, Hockey Canada announced Friday. Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche, who is also from Cole Harbour, and Nashville forward Ryan O’Reilly of Clinton, Ont., were named alternates. The announcement comes 10 years after Crosby’s last world championship appearance, when he captained Canada to a gold medal in Czechia. Crosby was also captain of Canada’s championship team at the 4 Nations Face-Off earlier this year. He also wore the ‘C’ for Canada’s Olympic gold medallists in 2014 and World Cup of Hockey-winning team in 2016. Crosby has been a winner in international hockey whether he leads the Canadian team or not. He won a silver medal with Canada as a 16-year-old at the 2004 world junior hockey championship and gold at the tournament the following year. In prehaps his most memorable moment wearing the Maple Leaf, he scored the tournament-winning goal against the United States in overtime at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver. Canada opens its tournament Saturday against Slovenia in Stockholm, Sweden.
