Connor McDavid Centres Surprising Line At Canada’s First Practice

Team Canada is officially here.

Today, Team Canada held its first practice in Montreal, giving us our first look at how they will line up at the Four Nations Face-Off. This is what they rolled with on their first day:

Sam Reinhart – Connor McDavid – Mitch Marner
Mark Stone – Sidney Crosby – Nathan MacKinnon
Brad Marchand – Brayden Point – Seth Jarvis
Brandon Hagel – Anthony Cirelli – Sam Bennett
Travis Konecny (sick)
Devon Toews – Cale Makar
Josh Morrissey – Colton Parayko
Shea Theodore – Drew Doughty
Travis Sanheim

To no one’s surprise, Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid centres the first line. McDavid is joined by two elite two-way wingers in Mitch Marner and Sam Reinhart, with Marner providing skill and playmaking while Reinhart fills a Zach Hyman-type scoring role on McDavid’s wing.

Further down the lineup, the much-discussed Cole Harbour connection of Crosby and MacKinnon is joined by yet another elite twoway winger in Mark Stone. It’s a bit surprising to see Stone on his off-wing rather than Brad Marchand, another Nova Scotia native who dominated on a line with Crosby and Patrice Bergeron at the 2016 World Cup.

Instead, Marchand will feature on an absolute headache of a third line next to Brayden Point and Seth Jarvis. Put two of the league’s best pests and energy wingers next to one of the most efficient and clutch scorers in recent memory and you’ve got a nightmare for opposing teams.

Finally, the fourth line features two members of the Tampa Bay Lightning’s second line, Brandon Hagel and Anthony Cirelli. They’ll be joined by either Sam Bennett or Travis Konecny to create a high-energy shutdown line built to take on the likes of Auston Matthews, William Nylander, and Mikko Rantanen.

Head coach Jon Cooper also played with the powerplay, showing off a terrifying top unit led by — who else? — McDavid.