Practices have begun in Montreal for the four-team tournament.
Practices for the 4 Nations Face-Off are underway, and Toronto Maple Leafs forward Mitch Marner has found himself grouped with some elite talent.
As Canada began their practice sessions in Montreal, Marner was skating on the right side of the top line alongside Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid and Sam Reinhart.
While Marner is aligned with some elite talent at even strength, it appears Canada will start him on the second power play alongside forwards Brayden Point, Mark Stone and defensemen Josh Morrissey and Shea Theodore.
Canada was the first team to practice in Montreal with the remaining three nations set to practice later in the day.
Marner is one of four Maple Leafs selected for the tournament, joining Auston Matthews (USA) and William Nylander ((Sweden). Although Jani Hakanpaa was selected to be on Finland's roster, the Leafs already announced that the defenseman wasn't healthy enough to play due to an ongoing knee issue.
After the practice session, Marner fielded questions from the media and here were some of the key takeaways:
1. He stressed the importance of Sidney Crosby joining the Canadian group for practice.
"Obviously what he's done for Canada, you know what he means to this team. So it's great to see him out there and he looked pretty good."
During player availabilities, Crosby confirmed he would be in the lineup for practice after there was some doubt about the star's availability for the tournament due to an injury.
2. Team chemistry: Marner emphasized the importance of building chemistry quickly, particularly with his potential linemates, given the limited practice time before the first game. He plans to achieve this through communication on the ice.
"tal a lot, communicate through the three zones and try to figure out where we are and try to get the puck as quick as we can."
3. Excitement for the tournament: Marner expresses his enthusiasm for playing in the tournament and representing Canada, especially since this kind of international competition hasn't happened in a long time. He's also excited to play against other top players.
"This hasn't happened for a long time. So, it's great to have it back," Marner said of the best-on-best format. "Everyone's excited about it. We'll try to get our feet under as quick as we can, get stuff going here and try to figure out what our game plan is going through.
4. Playing in Montreal: Marner anticipates the energetic atmosphere of playing at the Bell Centre in Montreal, but this time with the crowd supporting him instead of against him as a Toronto Maple Leafs player.
"It would be nice to be on the other side of it for a while. It's always a great atmosphere in that arena. It's something that fans get up for. So, it would be exciting and it would be nice to be on the same side as it."
5. Childhood memories: Marner recalls watching international hockey tournaments like the Olympics and World Juniors as a kid, highlighting the importance of representing his country.
"You saw it on your TV, watched World Juniors, you watched any kind of Olympics, any kind of team Canada event. You'd always cheer for your country and you'd want them to do the best regardless of the sport," Marner said.
6. Playing with elite talent: Marner acknowledges the skill level of his teammates, particularly McDavid's speed, and emphasizes getting the puck to him in open ice. He also finds it remarkable to be playing alongside Sidney Crosby.
7. Previous teammates: He identifies a few players on Team Canada whom he has played with before, including Brayden Point and Travis Konecny. He also played with Nathan MacKinnon at the World Championships before. He acknowledged that he trains and is good friends with Tampa Bay Lightning forward Anthony Cirelli and that it will be fun to be on the same team with him for the first time.
8. Travel and preparation: After the Maple Leafs fell 2-1 to the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday, Marner traveled home and was briefly home before making his way to Montreal for Canada's first practice.
"I got to go home for about four hours, five hours, see my dog for a little bit and then packed up again," Marner said. "It's kind of nice to go home. I didn't want to pack for a month long trip, obviously. So, yeah, it was nice to go home, pack up and kind of just try to regroup as much as you can to get used to the time change."
The Leafs had wrapped up a four-game road trip where they had been on the road since Jan. 30.
Marner was the only Maple Leafs selected to join the Canadian squad that will open their tournament on Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET against Nylander's Sweden squad. Marner entered the 4 Nations break in a tie for fourth in the NHL in league scoring with 71 points in 53 games. His 55 assists is third in the NHL behind Canada teammate Nathan MacKinnon (66) and Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov (57).
Marner has competed for Canada in a couple of tournaments before:
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