Team Canada confirms lines at practice, 2 forwards absent after being shaken up

February 17, 2026 skysportsuk Blog 0

Team Canada is practicing on the ice before their quarterfinal match tomorrow, but Nathan MacKinnon and Sam Bennett are not on the ice.

MacKinnon seemed a bit hurt after Canada’s last match against France when he took a hard hit from defender Pierre Crinon. Near the end of that game, it looked like he was struggling, and it seems Bennett might have hurt something too.

Team Canada shares their starting lineup during practice before the quarterfinals.

From what sources mentioned at today’s practice, Canada was using these line pairings:

Their team still looks really strong, but not having one of their top players, MacKinnon, would be a big loss.

 

However, Coach Jon Cooper told reporters after practice that both MacKinnon and Bennett are just taking care of themselves today. They are expected to play in the game tomorrow, but they might not be at their best health.

Josh Morrissey also participated fully in practice today and reporters in Milan said he looked good. He worked alongside Colton Parayko and should be ready to play tomorrow.

On the latest episode of the 32 Thoughts Podcast, Elliotte Friedman mentioned that Canada has decided Binnington will be the main goalie for the upcoming games. Even though he let in two not-so-great goals during the match against France, Binnington is still the choice.

One goal went right through him. After that, he almost let another in too. But overall, I thought he did okay. He’s the one we’re sticking with. I’m not worried about it.

– Elliotte Friedman

 

Tomorrow, Team Canada will face the winner of the match today between Czechia and Denmark at 8:40 am MST.

Now that they are at the elimination stage of the tournament, every game from now on is a must-win. Canada has to win every game to secure the Gold Medal.

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