MILAN — Sidney Crosby couldn’t take the ice for the third period of Canada’s quarterfinal matchup with Czechia on Wednesday, but the captain did address his teammates before they returned to a 2-2 game with an Olympic semifinal berth on the line.
Whatever emotional message he delivered in the aftermath of suffering a lower-body injury, Team Canada responded and rallied for a 4-3 overtime win over the Czechs.
“I think that was a big thing coming in [to the final frame],” Canada head coach Jon Cooper said. “We lose this game, we didn’t want this to be Sid’s last game at this Olympics. It was a big motivator for the guys coming out.”
Cooper did not have an immediate update on Crosby, who will undergo imaging to determine the severity of his injury, according to ESPN.
The 38-year-old Crosby was shaken up after his right leg folded underneath him on a hard hit from Radko Gudas. The Czech defenseman then teamed up with Martin Necas to sandwich Crosby into the boards shortly after.
Visibly rattled, Crosby was slow to the bench and looked to be in pain. After consulting with a trainer, the Nova Scotia native retreated to the locker room for the remainder of the game.
Gudas hadn’t watched the replay when asked about it, but he said he hoped Crosby was OK.
“It obviously sucks,” Mitch Marner, who netted the game-winner, said of losing Crosby. “Hopefully he’s OK and doing better. We’ll see how he’s doing when we get back in there. But, obviously, means a lot to this team, and not just on the ice, but off the ice as well.”
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Despite falling behind by a goal at the 12:18 mark of the third period, the Canadians were inspired following the pep talk from Crosby. Nick Suzuki ultimately netted the game-tying goal before Marner won it in overtime.
Crosby is donning the “C” for Team Canada in a fourth straight best-on-best tournament.
Through three games, Crosby has posted two goals and four assists.
“We just rally around him,” Drew Doughty said. “Hopefully he’s gonna be all right for the next one. But if he’s not, guys gotta step up. That’s just the bottom line. Sucks to see your captain go down and a player of that stature. But what are you gonna do, really?”