It was a clutch moment. When his Canada teammates needed it the most, Mitch Marner set up the tournament-winning goal at the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament, finding Connor McDavid for the winner. Feb 20, 2025; Boston, MA, USA; [Imagn Images direct customers only] Team Canada forward Connor McDavid (97) celebrates scoring in overtime to win with defenseman Devon Toews (5) and defenseman Cale Makar (8) and forward Mitch Marner (16) against Team USA during the 4 Nations Face-Off ice hockey championship game at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images. [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/0a300532-8ca8-48c8-afe3-a02e4b39bc81.jpeg] Feb 20, 2025; Boston, MA, USA; [Imagn Images direct customers only] Team Canada forward Connor McDavid (97) celebrates scoring in overtime to win with defenseman Devon Toews (5) and defenseman Cale Makar (8) and forward Mitch Marner (16) against Team USA during the 4 Nations Face-Off ice hockey championship game at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images. That goal sent Canada into a frenzy, helping the nation win the first hockey best-on-best tournament since 2016. Watch as Canada forward Connor McDavid puts the cap on a thrilling 4 Nations Face-Off final against the United States, rifling home the winner past Connor Hellebuyck in overtime to clinch the tournament title. Can Auston Matthews get to 50 Goals before the end of the 2024-25 season? The Wraparound Show discusses After the game, Marner spoke with reporters in Boston to describe the moment and what it will do for the player going forward when he returns to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Q: How did that feel for you? "It felt good, I can't lie. Yeah, I know it felt really good. Got to give big credit to Binnington though. I mean, got a couple of massive saves there in overtime that definitely could have ended the game. So yeah, it felt really good." Q: How fitting was it in 2010, Sidney Crosby golden goal? This one you're setting up Connor McDavid? "Yeah, I mean, you know, it was great. I think, you know, great vision by Cale first off, seeing me all the way down in the far corner and then kind of rimmed around, just handled it quickly. Tried to just kind of get up the ice quickly and find Connor in the slot there and he did the rest." Q: Was there like an international passing of the torch moment from Sid to Connor, it seems? "Maybe, I don't know. I think, you know, like we've talked about, Crosby's been a lot of our idols and still is our idol. So I think I said it this morning, I'm happy to have him on my team in games like these." Q: What's it mean to the fans, Canada, the jersey you're wearing? "Yeah, it's special. It means a lot. I mean, unfortunately, times I've worn the Canadian jersey, we haven't had as great success as we did in this tournament. So it feels good. You want to, you always want to win these kind of things. And so we did." The Hockey News - 'He's Going To Be Pumped As S***': Maple Leafs' Mitch Marner Scores Overtime Winner For Canada in Opening Game Of 4 Nations Face-Off [https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/HV31xGZf/poster.jpg?width=720] The Hockey News - 'He's Going To Be Pumped As S***': Maple Leafs' Mitch Marner Scores Overtime Winner For Canada in Opening Game Of 4 Nations Face-Off Marner grew up idolizing Sidney Crosby and scoring a goal set up buy the decorated NHL athlete was a dream come true. [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/toronto-maple-leafs/latest-news/hes-going-to-be-pumped-as-s-maple-leafs-mitch-marner-scores-overtime-winner-for-canada-in-opening-game-of-4-nations-face-off] Q: I think you put that puck right on the pass, right past Auston. Is there any shred of sympathy in your heart right now for your teammate? "Man, he played a great game tonight. He's, I mean, what a warrior he was tonight again in this whole tournament. So, yeah, you know, it's always, like I spoke about before the tournament, it's always fun competing against him. He's such a competitor, such a great player. I'm very fortunate to be on his line and play with him a lot. I mean, I thought he was going to score on me when I was on the ice there, to be honest. And Binner made a hell of a save. And then, luckily enough, you know, like I said, I found Connor and he put it home." Q: What can you take out of this, not just for the rest of the season, but maybe in the Olympics next year? What can you take out of this? "Confidence. Belief, also in a way. I'll try to take this the rest of the season and moving forward." The Hockey News - Screen Shots: Marner's 4 Nations Opportunity, L.A.'s Charity Game Lineup And Duclair's Rink In Florida [https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/lV3VLOYE/poster.jpg?width=720] The Hockey News - Screen Shots: Marner's 4 Nations Opportunity, L.A.'s Charity Game Lineup And Duclair's Rink In Florida Adam Proteau discusses Mitch Marner's golden opportunity, the Los Angeles Kings' charity event to fundraise for fire aid and the Anthony Duclair Foundation's new synthetic ice rink. [https://thehockeynews.com/news/screen-shots-marners-4-nations-opportunity-l-a-s-charity-game-lineup-and-duclairs-rink-in-florida] Q: How much will you remind Auston of this? "Oh no, no, I won't. Like I spoke about, Auston's my guy. He's been my guy since day one. We've been through a lot of s**t together. And unfortunately, we were against each other. But that's the fun of these tournaments. You get to play against the guys that you really love. So like I spoke about, he was a hell of a competitor. He had a hell of a game for them tonight. And it was nice to be on the other side of things and win this one." Q: Gretzky to Lemieux, Iginla to Crosby, Marner to McDavid. Got a nice ring to it for you? "Yeah, it's pretty crazy. You know, I'm fortunate enough to be on this team. Fortunate to play with some amazing players. And yeah, I just tried to find Connor in quiet space. And you know, he did the rest, like I said." Q: You're going to take your medal into the Leafs locker room? "Oh no, I don't think so, no. We'll see. Maybe. I don't know if guys really want to see it. But you know, it's a cool moment. I'll share with my family and enjoy that with my family. Especially, like I said, through just kind of the ups and downs that we've been through. So it's cool to win something and hoist something." Q: What do you think your family is going to play when you see them? "They're going to be fired up. Really fired up. My brother's going to be probably the most fired up, I think. He's probably had a good time tonight. A little stressed as well with a couple beverages. But yeah, he's going to be really fired up. My mom and dad are going to be really fired up as well as my wife. So it's going to be really nice to see them and just see the smile on their face and that first embrace." Q: Are they here? "Yeah, they were all here tonight watching. I was looking for them at the end of the game actually and I got to see them and they were just hopping around like three-year-olds. So it was great to see." Q: What did it feel like to hoist that trophy? "Relief in a way. A cool feeling. Obviously, you know, it's nothing. Well, I mean, it's something. It's something cool. It's something that, you know, we had to earn and work through and compete against the very high-end players. So it's a cool thing to be able to hoist that. And, you know, like I said, just try to take confidence out of this tournament going in back into Toronto." Q: What was said in the dressing room before the overtime? "Just stick to our game. Stick to our confidence. We knew we had a great team in here that had four lines that could do a lot of things out there and, you know, three deep pairs that could all play big minutes. So, and a goalie that had been in big moments before that has not, you know, shyed away or shyed down on it. So, especially in this building. So we just knew we got to stick with the game playing game on the foot on the pedal. Thought we got away from it to be honest in the first kind of five or so minutes. And that's when Binner came in massive for us. And then after that, you know, I think we had one or two looks and luckily enough went in." Q: Earlier in the tournament you talked about if 10-year-old Mitch, you know, he was going to play with Sidney Crosby. What's 10-year-old Mitch thinking now? Yeah. I mean, I've competed against Connor McDavid a lot in my lifetime.You know, obviously growing up same age, we played in the OMHA against each other, played in the GTHL against each other. We really never got to play with each other. And that's something that we talked about coming into this tournament. Then funny enough, first, you know, kind of practice, we're on the same line together. We're just kind of talking about how we want to kind of play and stuff like that. And yeah, it's a nice relief to be on his side now instead of against him for a lot of years. Yeah, it's going to be a really cool moment to kind of look back on that and enjoy that with, you know, my family and with him. Stay updated with the most interesting Maple Leafs stories, analysis, breaking news and more! Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News [https://news.google.com/publications/CAAqBwgKMK-q0gsw7sXpAw/sections/CAQqEAgAKgcICjCvqtILMO7F6QMwytvfCA?ceid=CA:en&oc=3] to never miss a story.
