while Tom Wilson and Sidney Crosby share the love on the outside, apparently they almost literally share the ice as teammates, too. The two opponents are both in the final group of Canadian hockey players considered for the last Winter Olmypics.
Wilson sat down with Elliotte Friedman and Jeff Marek on 32 Thoughts Podcast on his way out of Las Vegas for the NHL’s preseason Media Tour. The three chatted about the national team process and Wilson possibly playing alongside Crosby.
Friedman started the convo by asking if Wilson had been told that he would definitely make the final Canadian Olympic Team or not.
“I wasn’t told if I was on that team, no,” Wilson said. “But I know I’m looking. What I was told, the last time, there were a couple left somewhere and I was at the table. So I don’t know how valid or true that is.
“That whole experience was really crazy for me because Team Canada is like a different monster, right? It’s just like this team is held at the top, the best players in the world, and the all superstars. So beautiful, so cool.”
Wilson confirmed that he is subject to IOC testing in December of 2021 as he is on Canada’s long list of 55 athletes vying for a roster spot at the 2022 Games. Unfortunately, just a few weeks ago the NHL and NHLPA reached an agreement that no players will go to Beijing due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
While Wilson’s participation is very much up in the air, Crosby is certain to go to China as his replacement confirmed months ago. The Pittsburgh Penguins superstar, like many other stars around the league, has not played national team hockey since the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.
Friedman continued by asking if Wilson had ever thought about what it would be like to share a locker room with Crosby. “It doesn’t really count, but I chatted with him yesterday when he came off the ice, and [he’s] a good, good man,†Wilson said. “I haven’t crossed paths with him much off the ice. We didn’t get into it on the ice either. So considering the rivalry, I just tried to make sure that he doesn’t hurt me outside, but he seems like a big person.
“And I mean, being in that room with the caliber of players that are on those calls and having some meetings leading up to the Olympics makes sense, it’s definitely a ‘pinch-me’ moment to talk about with some of those names.”
Wilson was a big part of the Stanley Cup winning Capitals team in 2018 so part of his hockey bucket list has been crossed off but he admits Olympic gold is on it too. The 2026 Winter Olympics will take place in Italy. Wilson will be 32 years old and the league has not yet decided whether the players will play in the tournament or not.
“When you’re a kid in the backyard rink when you’re growing up, it’s the NHL, the Stanley Cup, Team Canada’s gold medal,” Wilson said. “I mean, that’s the hockey resume that’s most important to every kid in Canada — Olympic gold medal, I have to say. And I think growing up, seeing some of those teams, seeing Sid score that goal in Vancouver, those moments are just some of the proudest moments in hockey and something every kid who played the game dreams of. I mean, it never happened, so it’s fun to talk about it; who knows if was I there, but to be a part of that process and be talked about by that group of players is pretty cool.
Even if the NHL is not going to the Olympics and the circumstances surrounding that decision are very sad, at least Caps fans won’t have to suffer seeing Crosby and Wilson in the same hug in celebration of the goal. Gross.