OT winner reminiscent of Crosby’s ‘Golden Goal’ in 2010 with 2026 Olympics next for superstar duo

mcdavid_moment

© Ben Jackson/4NFO/World Cup of Hockey

BOSTON — Connor McDavid got open and waited — for the puck, for his moment. The chance of a lifetime came when Canada teammate Mitch Marner passed it from the left corner to the left hash marks. McDavid settled it on his stick.

“The second he got it,” Canada defenseman Cale Makar said, “I was like, ‘Yep. There you go.’”

In a flash, McDavid turned and fired it past the glove of Connor Hellebuyck at 8:18 of overtime, and that was it. Canada defeated the United States 3-2 in the 4 Nations Face-Off championship game at TD Garden on Thursday. An epic tournament had a memorable ending.

A great player had a signature moment.

McDavid chugged his feet so hard as he curled toward the boards, he nearly fell down. The center jumped into the air and got mobbed by his teammates against the glass.

CAN@USA: McDavid buries the OT winner past Hellebuyck, to win the 4 Nations Face-Off Championship

In the first best-on-best tournament since the World Cup of Hockey 2016, Canada reestablished its dominance. The Canadians have won 10 of the 14 best-on-best tournaments ever played, including the past four.

This was a combination of the Olympics and the Stanley Cup Final. One by one, the players received gold medals. They stood arm in arm and sang “O Canada” loud and proud. Then they received the trophy, passed it around on the ice and drank from it in the dressing room.

“Obviously, it means a lot to our group,” McDavid said. “I think a lot of people were wondering what this tournament would mean to guys, and obviously you can see what it means to everyone on our side. It was really exciting.”

It’s tempting to say the torch was passed.

McDavid was 13 years old when he watched Sidney Crosby score the “Golden Goal” at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. Canada was tied with the United States 2-2 in overtime then too. Crosby gave Canada a 3-2 win at 7:40 of OT.

Now here was McDavid, 28, playing the hero on the same team as Crosby, 37.

“Well, I think you’re going to see Sid in 12 months, so I don’t think this is the passing of any torch,” McDavid said. “Sid had a great tournament. He was a big part of our group, and I think you’ll see him in a year’s time.”

True.

Crosby (one goal, four assists) and McDavid (three goals, two assists) each had five points in four games, tied for second in the 4 Nations Face-Off in scoring behind U.S. defenseman Zach Werenski, who had six assists.

They seem destined to play together at the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympics.

Maybe they can hold the torch together?

“I don’t think of it that way,” Crosby, Canada’s captain, said with a laugh. “I’m just really happy he scored. He couldn’t be more deserving of an opportunity and that moment.

“I don’t look at the torch being passed. I’m happy and grateful to be part of this group. It’s not easy at the level that these guys play at and the work it takes to be involved with this group. I’m just really grateful and proud that he was able to get a big moment like that, but just really happy that we won.”

McDavid had been waiting for this.

He won gold with Canada at the IIHF Under-18 World Championship in 2013, the IIHF World Junior Championship in 2015 and the IIHF World Championship in 2016. But at the World Cup of Hockey 2016, he didn’t get to represent his country. He played for Team North America, a group of 23-and-under stars from Canada and the United States.

He went to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final with the Edmonton Oilers last season, coming back from a 3-0 series deficit. Although he won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the playoffs most valuable player, he declined to come out onto the ice to accept it because the Oilers fell short, losing a heartbreaker to the Florida Panthers, 2-1.

This tournament showcased hockey at its highest level with many of the best players in the world boiled down to four teams. Even though it was in the middle of the regular season and each team had little practice time, the players put on a show that caught the attention of people across the hockey world and beyond. The pace and passion were unparalleled.

“You’re going through the dog days of the year almost,” McDavid said, “and you’re instantly thrown into the Stanley Cup Final.”

And it was McDavid — the five-time NHL scoring champion, the three-time NHL MVP, the one in the Rogers ads calling hockey “our game” — who came through in the end.

“He’s clutch,” Makar said. “He scores those goals when you need him to. You saw him tonight. He was working on both sides of the puck and he’s a really fun player to play with and I hope our connection just grows into the Olympics next year.”

Maybe McDavid will have another moment then, too.

“We want to do it again next February,” McDavid said. “That’s what it comes down to. Obviously, this was great, exciting. But the focus is next February, doing it in Italy.”