Penguins Captain Sidney Crosby and defenseman Erik Karlsson have been named to Team Canada and Team Sweden’s roster, respectively, for the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off, it was announced today.
The 4 Nations Face-Off is an international tournament with NHL players from the U.S., Canada, Finland, and Sweden that will be played in Boston, Massachusetts and Montreal, Quebec from Feb. 12-20, 2025. Crosby and Karlsson join Penguins’ Head Coach Mike Sullivan at the 4 Nations Face-Off, who was announced as the head coach of Team USA in May.
Crosby, 36, is one of the most decorated players in NHL and international hockey history. The three-time Stanley Cup Champion (2009, ’16, ’17) ranks 10th in NHL history with 1,596 points (592G-1,004A) in 1,272 career regular-season games. He’s averaged a point per game or better in all 19 of his NHL seasons, which is tied with Wayne Gretzky for most in NHL history, and ranks in the top-25 in NHL history in goals (592, 21st), assists (1,004, 14th), points (1,596, 10th) and game-winning goals (90, 23rd). Since making his NHL debut, no player has more assists or points than the 11-time All Star.
On the international stage, no one has shined brighter than Crosby. The native of Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia has won two Olympic gold medals (2010, ’14), serving as an alternate captain in 2010 and captain for the 2014 squad. He scored the gold-medal winning overtime goal against the United States at the 2010 Winter Olympic Games on his native soil in Vancouver, BC, which has since been dubbed “The Golden Goal”. Crosby has also won gold medals in the World Cup of Hockey (2016), World Championship (2015) and World Junior Championship (2005). He is the 26th player ever to join the Triple Gold Club, which is winning the Stanley Cup and gold medals at the Olympic Games and the World Championship. He is the only member of the 30-player club to captain all three of his teams to their respective titles.
Karlsson, 34, recently completed his first season in Pittsburgh, leading all team defensemen in goals (11), assists (45) and points (56). The three-time Norris Trophy winner became the 14th active defenseman to play in 1,000 career NHL games on April 13. The seven-time NHL All-Star has recorded 817 points (189G-628A) through 1,002 career games between Pittsburgh, Ottawa and San Jose. Karlsson ranks third in goals (189), first in assists (628) and second in points (817) among active defensemen. His 817 points rank 18th in NHL history among defensemen, and no blueliner has notched more points since Karlsson’s NHL debut.
At the international level, the Landsbro, Sweden native represented his home country most recently at the 2024 World Championship, captaining his team to a bronze medal. He’s also medaled with Team Sweden at the 2014 Olympic Games (silver), the 2010 World Championship (bronze), 2009 World Junior Championship (silver). He led all players in points and was named the “Best Defenseman” at the Olympics in 2014.
