CALGARY — Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid and Pittsburgh Penguins counterpart Sidney Crosby are among the 42 NHL players invited by Hockey Canada to its men's summer Olympic orientation camp later this month.
The camp, slated to run Aug. 26-28 in Calgary, will be an off-ice event featuring presentations, team-building sessions and meetings to prepare players and staff for the Olympic season.
The roster includes the six players — McDavid, Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche, Brayden Point of the Tampa Bay Lightning and Sam Reinhart of the Florida Panthers — named to the team in June.
The list features all 24 players from Canada's championship-winning squad at the 4 Nations Face-Off in February, including the same trio of goaltenders — Jordan Binnington of the St. Louis Blues, Adin Hill of the Vegas Golden Knights and Sam Montembeault of the Montreal Canadiens.
Also invited are veteran forwards Tom Wilson of the Washington Capitals, John Tavares of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal's Nick Suzuki, along with defencemen Evan Bouchard of the Edmonton Oilers and MacKenzie Weegar of the Calgary Flames.
The roster is sprinkled with a new generation of talent, including 20-year-old Connor Bedard of the Chicago Blackhawks and 19-year-old Macklin Celebrini of the San Jose Sharks.
Tampa Bay head coach Jon Cooper, who was behind the bench at the 4 Nations, will once again be calling the shots in Italy.
The men's Olympic hockey tournament runs Feb. 11-22 in Milan, Italy — the first time in 12 years the event will include NHL players following an agreement with the International Olympic Committee and the International Ice Hockey Federation.
The league participated in five straight Games from 1998 through 2014. The NHL elected to skip the 2018 showcase for financial reasons before COVID-19 scuttled plans for a return in 2022.
Canada's NHLers won gold at the 2002, 2010 and 2014 Games.
The league and NHL Players' Association have also committed to the 2030 Olympics, and have plans to hold a World Cup every four years beginning in 2028.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 1, 2025.
The Canadian Press
