Crosby to Marner: 4 Nations opener electrifies as Canada downs Sweden in OT

It’s been nearly a decade since men’s international hockey has seen the best players from their countries face off against one another.

On Wednesday night in Montreal, Canada and Sweden showed all those who watched what the hockey world has been missing out on.

An overtime thriller saw Canada down Sweden 4-3 in the opening game of the 4 Nations Face-Off that saw a vintage performance from captain Sidney Crosby, a statement goal from forward Mitch Marner and a rocking home crowd.

Here are five highlights from the game.

There were doubts Crosby, 37, would even be able to suit up for the opening game after picking up an injury just before the tournament began.

However, Crosby looked like he was performing at 100 per cent, picking up three assists in what will go down as a vintage performance for the future Hall of Fame player.

Crosby facilitated the opening goal with a spin-o-rama backhand pass across the crease to fellow Nova Scotian Nathan MacKinnon on the power play in the first period. Crosby then dished it to a trailing Mark Stone in the second period to make it 3-1 for Canada.

In overtime, Crosby sent a back pass to Marner in the neutral zone and hurried out of Sweden’s zone to avoid an offside call, setting up Marner to bury the game-winning goal and seal the 4-3 win.

The Toronto Maple Leafs are well-represented in the tournament, with Marner and Swedish forward William Nylander squaring off against each other in Wednesday’s game.

But captain Auston Matthews, who is leading Team USA, was also featured in Wednesday’s showcase. Matthews was brought out during the opening ceremony, alongside Finland captain Aleksander Barkov.

Unlike the cheers heard for Marner, Matthews was greeted by loud boos from the pro-Canadian crowd – a typical experience for Matthews when he and the Leafs play the Canadiens in Montreal.

Matthews and the Americans will play Finland on Thursday, with puck drop set for 8 p.m. eastern at the Bell Centre.

Crosby and MacKinnon may be the first players that come to mind when thinking about prominent hockey players out of Nova Scotia.

But Brad Marchand, born in the Halifax suburb of Hammonds Plains, popped in a goal after receiving a cross-ice pass from linemate Brayden Point to make the score 2-1 in the first period.

Marchand, who captains the Boston Bruins, doesn’t ever get cheers when in Montreal. But after scoring that goal, the crowd erupted.

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Mario Lemieux, one of the all-time great hockey players, made a surprise appearance holding Canada’s ceremonial banner during the opening ceremony.

And the crowd erupted, even chanting his name before puck drop.

Lemieux, born in Montreal, also made a surprise appearance in Canada’s locker room before the game to read out the starting lineup.

When the 4 Nations shifts to Boston for the final stretch of games next week, fans there will have their work cut out for them.

The crowd in Montreal for opening night was electric for the first best-on-best action in men’s international hockey in almost a decade.

Fans were electric, and were also advised by the public announcer before the game to respect the singing of the national anthem.

That came amid the backdrop of a growing trade war between the United States and its allies like Canada, which prompted booing of The Star-Spangled Banner at professional sporting events in Canada earlier this month.

With that in mind, Canada and the United States will square off on Saturday in Montreal, with puck-drop set for 8 p.m. eastern.