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John Cooper's plate is already full with his daily work.
The Tampa Bay Lightning head coach has had to navigate a minefield of injuries to key players during his first two months of the NHL schedule. Normally, that would take up the two-time Stanley Cup champion's entire professional bandwidth.
However, this season is different.
The league and its players are ready for a long-awaited Olympic return at the Cortina Winter Games in Milan in 2026 after a 12-year absence.
And Cooper, who led Canada from the bench to victory in the Four Nations and will take on the same role in Italy when the calendar turns to February, expects a tough task when it comes to formalizing the country's squad.
Hosts Carissa Donkin and The Athletic's Hayley Salvian discuss which of three promising Canadian stars could make the Milan Cortina 2026 men's hockey team.
“Well, it's getting bigger as we get closer,” he said Monday at Scotiabank Arena about the Olympics, which was on his mind ahead of Tampa's game against the Toronto Maple Leafs. “Being a Canadian coach, you really give the Canadians your best effort every time you play. I am one of many who watch these players and I cannot overstate the work that goes into recruiting this team.
“The decisions will be difficult, excruciatingly difficult, and that’s a good thing. This means the children are playing well. This is where the crunch comes in the next couple of weeks.”
The “kids” Cooper was referring to were San Jose Sharks center McLean Celebrini and fellow Chicago Blackhawks Connor Bedard.
The young stars from North Vancouver, British Columbia, who were expected to be watching from the sidelines back in October, are expected to get into the conversation thanks to a stack of talented forwards.
The Canadian management team has spent months whittling down the long list of names vying to wear the maple leaf at Milan's Cortina in February.
Celebrini, 19, ranked second in the NHL in scoring with 43 points (15 goals, 28 assists) – trailing only Nathan MacKinnon – heading into Monday night's game. Meanwhile, 20-year-old Bedard finished fourth with 40 points (18 goals, 22 assists), just two behind Connor McDavid.
– But it's good, isn't it? Cooper said the duo were making life difficult for the Canadian brain trust. “I mean, it's good for them. And it's just amazing that such young players can come in and have such a positive impact. I think when they say it's a game for young people, it really is.”
“These are exceptional talents.”
Canada has plenty of this.
MacKinnon and McDavid are already included in the lineup along with Sidney Crosby, Cale Makar, Sam Reinhart and Brayden Point.
Those six players helped Canada win the Four Nations tournament, an appetizer before the league's return to the Olympic program. The application deadline for the 2026 Games in Italy is December 31.
Cooper said that while work continues to build the squad expected to bring home gold, he has had less contact with players already in the squad compared to this time last year ahead of the 4 Nations tournament.
“Now the relationship is built,” he said. “Got a good idea of what’s going on in the future.”
