Bruce Cassidy was ready to move on from the 4 Nations Face-Off. Then he got a text Tuesday morning.
It was a picture of the trophy Team Canada won in the best-on-best tournament. It now resides in the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto, with players and coaches’ names engraved on it.
“I had turned the page, I got that text and I was like, ‘Oh, that’s cool!’” Cassidy said.
It was the cherry on top of a memorable event for the Golden Knights coach. Cassidy said being an assistant on Team Canada’s coaching staff is “something I’ll never forget and it’s memory that will be up there.”
“It’s a trophy, right?” said Cassidy, who led the Knights to their first Stanley Cup championship in 2023. “You play for banners and trophies. We make a living doing this. You’ve got to pay bills. But for me, it’s always about the accomplishments you can get. This is one of them. Even if you’re an assistant, you’re still on the staff.”
Cassidy’s primary responsibility on Team Canada was the power play. That’s no surprise given the Knights are scoring on 28.5 percent of their opportunities this season, third-best in the NHL behind the Winnipeg Jets and Detroit Red Wings.
Of course, it’s one thing to have some great players on the man advantage. It’s another to construct a power play with some of the best skaters in the world.
Canada’s top unit — featuring center Sidney Crosby, center Connor McDavid, center Nathan MacKinnon, right wing Sam Reinhart and defenseman Cale Makar — has combined for six Hart Trophies and four Conn Smythe Trophies for playoff MVP.
All that skill kept Cassidy’s gears churning, though he said it was challenging to introduce new concepts to five players that had never played as a unit before.
“I can show them video on what they do with their own team, but they’re not five together,” Cassidy said. “We put that aside, just kind of walked through it, worked on it and then taped them in practice. They were good that way.”
The group needed just 56 seconds to score its first time out in Canada’s round-robin game against Sweden. McDavid passed the puck to Crosby near the goal line, then Crosby sent a no-look backhand pass to MacKinnon at the top of the left circle to set up the team’s first goal of the tournament.
Cassidy tried to keep his system similar to the ones his players use for their NHL clubs. He needed to get them up to speed fast given Canada only had four games to come together.
“It’s hard to build chemistry when you get one power play and then you need time to practice it,” Cassidy said. “That’s where the Olympics, if I’m fortunate enough to go, you’ll have a little more time to build in with stuff. This was quick, but still a great experience to be around great hockey minds.”
Cassidy was part of an impressive staff for Canada.
The group was led by Tampa Bay Lightning coach Jon Cooper, a two-time Stanley Cup champion. Former Knights coach Pete DeBoer, now with the Dallas Stars, was also an assistant, as was reigning coach of the year Rick Tocchet of the Vancouver Canucks.
“We had four head coaches standing on the bench, each doing different things,” said Knights captain Mark Stone, who was on Team Canada. “It’s different, for sure.”
Cassidy is now turning his focus to the Knights’ final 22 regular-season games. The team has won two straight as it looks to capture its fourth Pacific Division crown in eight years.
But Cassidy will carry memories from the 4 Nations Face-Off with him forever.
“To see the best players in the world go at that level was something,” Cassidy said. “Representing your country, it’s always an honor.”
Contact Danny Webster at [email protected]. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.
Karlsson, Schwindt return to practice
Golden Knights forwards William Karlsson and Cole Schwindt practiced Tuesday in no-contact jerseys as they recover from lower-body injuries.
Karlsson, 32, has not played since Jan. 20. His injury prevented him from representing Team Sweden in the 4 Nations Face-Off. He has 18 points in 38 games this season.
Schwindt, 23, has been out since Jan. 18. He has seven assists in 38 games this season after the Knights claimed him off waivers from the Calgary Flames in October.
Danny Webster/Review-Journal
