After a long and exhausting season, an Olympic injury, and the Pittsburgh Penguins’ hard-fought first-round playoff exit, Sidney Crosby still chose to represent Canada at the 2026 IIHF Men’s World Championship in Switzerland.
But not everyone was on board with how Team Canada went about its business after welcoming Crosby to the fold, as former NHL enforcer Jay Rosehill publicly questioned how the situation involving the Penguins icon was handled.
Former Enforcer Sounds Off on Sidney Crosby Situation
When the roster for the men’s worlds was announced, Macklin Celebrini made history by becoming the youngest captain in senior men’s national team history. The San Jose Sharks star added another incredible achievement to a season in which he posted 115 points and became a finalist for the Ted Lindsay Award.
Still, many assumed Crosby would automatically take over the captaincy once he arrived following Pittsburgh’s playoff elimination. Instead, Celebrini kept the “C,” marking the first time since 2010 that Crosby would play for Canada without serving as captain.
That decision did not sit well with former Toronto Maple Leafs enforcer Jay Rosehill.
“Giving a 19-year-old kid the captaincy of a team that Sidney Crosby is on is basically blasphemy,” Rosehill wrote. “He’s got years and years to be a leader. Why not give him the opportunity to watch the best in action? It would only benefit him down the road.”
Rosehill argued that Crosby still deserves that leadership role and believes the moment should have been handled differently.
“It will be a passing of the torch once Sid isn’t relevant anymore. The kid’s a phenom, but he’s 19 years old. The whole point of leadership would be to let Mack watch Sid in situations like this. Not shove the C down his throat while Sid is still standing there awkwardly,” he added.
Still, the reality behind the decision appears far less controversial inside Team Canada’s locker room.
According to NHL insider Chris Johnston, the decision actually came from the players themselves, with Crosby leading the push to keep Celebrini as captain.
When Crosby joined the team, he reportedly made it clear he was there to support the next generation and insisted that Celebrini remain captain. Crosby also shut down any media speculation, saying the captaincy was not important to him and that Celebrini had earned the role.
Instead, Crosby will wear an alternate captain’s “A” alongside veterans John Tavares and Ryan O’Reilly.
Before the tournament officially opened in Zürich and Fribourg, Celebrini delivered a dominant four-point performance in Canada’s pre-tournament exhibition win over France, giving fans another glimpse of why the organization, and Crosby himself, have so much confidence in the teenager.
