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Canada’s Sidney Crosby to miss semifinal game against Finland; McDavid to serve as captain

Steven Ellis
Feb 20, 2026, 09:18 ESTUpdated: Feb 20, 2026, 09:39 EST
Canada’s Sidney Crosby to miss semifinal game against Finland; McDavid to serve as captain
Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Canada’s Sidney Crosby will miss his team’s semifinal matchup against Finland on Friday afternoon in Milan, Italy.

Crosby left Wednesday’s semifinal with a suspected leg injury. 

Connor McDavid will serve as captain for Friday’s game, with the IIHF requiring someone to wear the C in an official game.

Sidney Crosby will not play in the semifinals. Connor McDavid will wear the ‘C’ today, with Cale Makar and Nathan MacKinnon serving as alternates. Sidney Crosby ne jouera pas en demi-finale. Connor McDavid portera le « C » aujourd’hui, Cale Makar et Nathan MacKinnon, le « A ».

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Defenseman Josh Morrissey will also play for the first time since suffering an undisclosed injury against Czechia. He will take ___’s spot in the lineup.

Crosby played just 4:41 of ice time across seven shifts before exiting the game, with Canada trailing Czechia 2-1. No. 87 had been having a great tournament heading into the knockout stage, scoring two goals and four assists for six points. He entered the quarterfinal in third in team scoring, trailing Connor McDavid and Macklin Celebrini.

Coach Jon Cooper previously said that Canada was taking Crosby’s injury on a day-by-day basis.

Crosby has been a huge part in Canada’s success on the international stage for the past decade or so. Along with being the hero in the gold medal game in 2010 in Vancouver, he’s helped Canada win gold again at the 2014 Winter Games. Additionally, Crosby took home the 2015 IIHF Men’s World Championship, the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, and the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off.

The 38-year-old future Hockey Hall of Famer has 27 goals and 59 points in 56 games with the Pittsburgh Penguins this season. He’s on pace for 87 points, which would mark the 15th time in his career he surpassed the 80-point threshold. Crosby has 16 points in 17 career Olympic contests, and 39 points in 26 World Championship outings.

Canada’s game gets underway at 10:40 AM ET on Friday, with a spot in Sunday’s gold medal game on the line. The loser will play either Slovakia or the United States in the bronze medal game on Saturday.


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