Jon Cooper on the excitement of 4 Nations preparations — and the pressure facing Team Canada

TAMPA, Fla.

Canadas stunning loss to Latvia at the World Juniors, and the predictable reaction in hockeys home country, was a real-time reminder of what Jon Cooper signed up for as head coach for the 4 Nations and Olympics .

Canadas love for the game it exported to the rest of the world hasnt waned one bit more than a century in, and it shows itself when the country has international success but perhaps even more so when the national pride is dented.

Advertisement And it just so happens that The Athletic sat down with Team Canadas Olympic coach Saturday, the day after the shocking loss to Latvia.

Whether its the NHL or whether its an international tournament, everybody wants their team to go 82-0, and in the regular season in the NHL its not feasible, Cooper said.

In tournaments, is it feasible? It is.

Does it always happen? Most times it does not.

Because of the standard that Hockey Canada set over the last 50 years, people expect us to win all the time.

But the goal in the end is to win the tournament.

And I dont care what team, every team thats won, theres been bumps in the road and theres been scares.

But its not how you start; its how you finish.

But when youre in that moment, sometimes it stings.

And Im sure that one stung a bit.

A framed picture behind the native of Prince George, B.C.s desk in his Lightning office at Amalie Arena, one from coaching Canada at the IIHF mens World Championship in 2017, is a constant reminder of his national pride.

But he is also sheltered here in Tampa, away from the 24/7 hockey religion playing out up north.

That passion played out ahead of Team Canadas roster selection for 4 Nations , with fans and media debating those selections in Canada like they were life and death.

Has that sunk in yet for Cooper the significance back home of whats ahead over the next 13 months? I have not felt it quite yet, Cooper said.

I probably felt it a little when we went on the western Canadian trip after the roster was announced.

Remember, were in Tampa, so Sportsnet and TSN arent running down here, he added with a laugh.

When we went out West, every place you go somebody is acknowledging you in a positive way, saying, Good luck.

Youre like, Wow, people are paying attention.

Advertisement Oh yeah, they are, especially when it comes to the Olympic tournament in Italy in February 2026.

But first things first.

Its all about the 4 Nations in six weeks or so.

And one notable element of how Team Canada has gone about putting its roster together is that management has leaned on Cooper in a way I dont remember Canada ever doing before for a best-on-best event.

I do think then-GM Steve Yzerman picked Mike Babcocks brain from time to time in the lead-up to the 2010 and 2014 Olympics, but the back-and-forth between 4 Nations GM Don Sweeney, Olympic GM Doug Armstrong and Cooper is at a whole new level.

Coop has unique communication skills, and he is one of the best coaches in our game, Sweeney said.

With Doug naming him both 4 Nations and Olympic coach as well as Julien (BriseBois) having an extensive working relationship with Coop and also being part of our management team, it has felt very natural to communicate and share our collective thoughts on not just players.

We all share the same goal, and everyone on the staff has been selfless and candid throughout while maintaining a tight circle.

The process has been rewarding.

The one goal is we want the result to be equally rewarding.

The original plan was for separate coaching assignments, which is to say Team Canada was going to name a head coach for 4 Nations and then wait a year and decide on the Olympic coach.

Somewhere along the way, its pretty clear Cooper communicated to everyone involved that if hes in, hes all-in.

Which makes total sense given the overlapping 4 Nations and Olympic process.

We were believers in being in this together, Cooper said, noting that while there are different GMs for each event, Armstrong and Sweeney are working side by side on both.

For us to have different management and different coaches for tournaments that are basically less than a year apart, that are going to have a lot of the same players, its hard to grow as a group if you know this wont be the coach in a year.

I think everybody understood that and everybody understood that as management as well, that were going to be a cohesive group.

Advertisement The point I wanted to make, though, is that I never wanted the 4 Nations tournament to be a stepping stone to the Olympics.

The 4 Nations tournament is a tournament were going there to win.

Nobody is making this team to say, Oh, lets give this guy a look to see if hes going to be somebody for the Olympics.

That is not the case.

With our management group and coaches, that was paramount for us.

Lets pick this team to win this.

And then lets Monday morning quarterback on Feb.

21 (for the Olympics).

All of which feeds right into Cooper having as much input into the process as he has.

In his mind, its an extension of having worked with the management group at great length in preparation for the 2022 Olympics before the NHL pulled the plug.

I would say 2022, even though we didnt get to go, was a big step for me in regards to Hockey Canada and with this group, Cooper said.

Because we had all gotten together we had all met, the trainers, the equipment guys, GMs it wasnt my first introduction to these guys and it wasnt my first introduction to being in the room with them.

Now you fast-forward to a couple of years later, and its like the band that never got to play is back together.

Because of that, Cooper feels the Canadian coaching-management relationship is stronger and the beliefs are aligned.

And I appreciate what theyre giving me, as an opportunity to help pick this team and not have a team just placed in front of me and say, Go coach it, Cooper said.

Because I do think there is identity.

How is the team going to play? What kind of identity? Are they going to take the identity of the coach? Or are you going to be coaching somebody that you dont feel is comfortable in how you do things? There are a lot of smart, hockey minds involved, and theyre not all going to agree.

The group, which also includes the likes of Jim Nill, Kyle Dubas and Scott Salmond, would submit mock rosters in the months leading up to the final roster decisions.

Then they would all compare their individual choices.

It was a practical and educational process.

Advertisement I probably went into a couple of these meetings about to dig my heels in and say, OK, Im going to fight for this guy, Cooper said.

And when I came out of it, I was like, Wow I didnt even have to fight for that guy.

In that regard, it made me feel good that we were all aligned.

Lightning forwards Brandon Hagel and Anthony Cirelli were among those added to the 4 Nations roster announced Dec.

4.

And while its easy to draw a straight line to a coach who is comfortable with those players, the reality is that the rest of the management group pushed just as hard for their inclusion.

I was probably their harshest critic making that team, Cooper said.

Because you dont want it to be, Youre looking after your guys.

There wasnt one person that second-guessed anything because theyve played unbelievable and deserved their spot.

We picked the guys that we felt deserved it.

Cooper said its interesting to compare their mock rosters from August to selection time in early December.

There are players that charged their way onto that roster, he said.

And there are players who took steps back.

Players are getting rewarded for what they accomplished in the first 30 games.

And so, to be a part of that and to watch those things ...

the one thing was to not grab somebody as a name just because well they have to be on the team.

We wanted everybody to earn it.

There are so many good players to choose from, Cooper added, that the decisions are always difficult.

You could probably jumble the 40 guys together and have two first teams, he said.

But this is the team we felt would be a competitive group and give us our best chance to win.

Team Canadas leadership group hasnt been named yet.

That undertaking is Coopers.

Obviously, either Sidney Crosby or Connor McDavid will be named captain, but theres a group of players who will get letters.

Cooper is working his way through all those discussions but said he wont rush into it.

Advertisement Its like picking the team youre not throwing out the top 20 Canadian scorers and saying theyre on the team, Cooper said.

The team is oozing with leadership.

Theres (NHL) captains and assistants all over this team.

I think a little bit of thought has to go into it.

There has to be communication with management, coaches and some players.

But well announce that in due time.

Until then, Coopers just enjoying the process.

One of the coolest things about this whole event and everything thats been going on is my communication with a lot of the players, Cooper said.

Being able to meet with Sid after our game in Pitt and have legitimate conversations about this and see the excitement in his eyes about this event and then we go to Edmonton and I sit down with Connor the morning of the game, to see the excitement on his face ...

More recently, after a game against the rival Panthers , Cooper got permission from Florida coach Paul Maurice to meet with Sam Reinhart and Sam Bennett to chat 4 Nations.

That Florida rivalry, one of the fiercest in the NHL in recent years, is cast aside when its time to chat Team Canada.

Its unique in a sense.

Weve been going to war against each other for years, yet when we got in the same room, its all about Team Canada, Cooper said.

And again, how damn excited the players are.

Its really been cool to be part of that.

Coopers eyes light up when hes sharing that anecdote.

His passion is clear, which helps explain why he took on this gig and the obvious pitfalls if the team doesnt win.

The two-time Stanley Cup champion coach isnt going through the motions.

He has rolled up his sleeves and is taking it as seriously as anything in his career.

The idea, of course, is to swap out that world championship silver medal hanging on the wall behind his Lightning desk for an Olympic gold medal in 13 months.

But first, its about making a statement at 4 Nations.

Cooper has helped pick the team that he believes will do just that.

(Top photo: Julio Aguilar / Getty Images).

This article has been shared from the original article on theathleticuk, here is the link to the original article.