Crosby, Matthews, Hedman, Barkov named 4 Nations captains

Canada, the United States, Sweden, and Finland announced their captains and leadership groups for the 4 Nations Face-Off on Thursday.

The tournament will run from Feb. 12-20 with games taking place in Montreal and Boston.

Sidney Crosby 🇨🇦

Pittsburgh Penguins icon and future Hall of Famer Crosby will take the ice as Canada's captain, while Connor McDavid and Cale Makar were tabbed as alternate captains.

Crosby has enjoyed a prolific career while rocking the maple leaf on the international stage. He scored the golden goal at the 2010 Olympics and wore the "C" four years later in Sochi while helping Canada to another first-place finish. His resume also includes a gold medal each from the 2005 World Junior Championship, 2015 World Championship, and 2016 World Cup of Hockey.

The 37-year-old is in the middle of his 20th NHL season, but he's as consistent as ever with a team-leading 39 assists and 55 points in 53 outings. Crosby hit the 600-goal and 1,600-point milestones earlier this campaign.

Crosby has received numerous accolades and racked up many achievements over the years, including three Stanley Cup championships; two Conn Smythe Trophies; a pair each of Hart, Art Ross, and Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophies; and a trio of Ted Lindsay Awards.

Auston Matthews 🇺🇸

Toronto Maple Leafs sniper Matthews got the call for the United States, while alternate captains Matthew Tkachuk and Charlie McAvoy round out the leadership group.

An upper-body injury has sidelined Matthews twice this season, forcing him out of 15 games total. Despite the adversity, he's logged 20 goals and 38 points in 36 outings. He's been particularly electric since returning from the ailment the second time, netting nine goals in his last 12 games. Matthews is also in his first season as captain of the Leafs, taking over for John Tavares.

The superstar is a three-time winner of the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy, including last season when he blitzed the league with a career-high 69 tallies. Matthews also took home the Hart Trophy and Ted Lindsay Award in 2022 after scoring 60 goals and 106 points in 73 matchups.

Matthews hasn't played internationally since 2016, when he was a member of Team North America at the World Cup of Hockey and represented the U.S. at the World Championship. The 27-year-old won back-to-back gold medals at the World U18 Championship in 2014 and 2015.

Victor Hedman 🇸🇪

Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Hedman will captain Sweden, while Erik Karlsson, Mattias Ekholm, and William Nylander will serve as alternate captains.

Hedman is in the midst of his first season as captain of the Bolts after Steven Stamkos signed with the Nashville Predators in the summer. The rearguard has registered seven goals and 40 points in 47 outings while seeing 23:27 minutes of ice time per contest this season, which is his 16th in Tampa Bay.

The 34-year-old won the Norris Trophy in 2018 as the league's best defenseman and helped the Lightning win back-to-back Stanley Cup championships in 2020 and 2021. He took home the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2020 after potting 10 goals and 22 points in 25 playoff games, during which he was a plus-13 and averaged 26:28 minutes of playing time.

Hedman is highly decorated internationally. He's medaled three times at the World Championship, winning gold in 2017 and bronze in 2024, and he picked up two silver medals at the World Junior Championships in 2008 and 2009. He also won bronze at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.

Aleksander Barkov 🇫🇮

Florida Panthers captain Barkov will don the "C" for Finland, while Sebastian Aho, Mikko Rantanen, and Mikael Granlund will serve as alternate captains.

Barkov has racked up 12 goals and 42 points in 42 outings this season while averaging 20:25 minutes of ice time and winning 60.4% of his faceoffs. He's once again considered the favorite to win the Selke Trophy as the league's top two-way forward.

The 29-year-old was instrumental in helping the Panthers win the Stanley Cup last spring, tallying a joint-best 22 points in 24 playoff games while going up against his opponents' top players. He finished second in Conn Smythe Trophy voting behind McDavid.

Barkov has experience repping Finland on the international stage, but he hasn't done so since 2016. He won a bronze medal at the 2014 Olympics despite being limited by an injury, as well as a silver medal at the 2016 World Championship.