Team Canada Makes Early Olympic Roster Move, Swaps In Sam Bennett for Injured Anthony Cirelli
With the puck drop in Milan-Cortina still weeks away, Team Canada is already shuffling the deck. Forward Sam Bennett has been added to the men’s Olympic hockey roster, stepping in for Anthony Cirelli, who was sidelined by an injury over the weekend.
Cirelli, the Tampa Bay Lightning center, was injured during Sunday’s Stadium Series game against the Boston Bruins. He took a heavy open-ice hit from Mark Kastelic and left the game in visible discomfort. Lightning and Team Canada head coach Jon Cooper described the injury postgame as “kind of a stinger,” but it was evidently serious enough to rule Cirelli out of Olympic contention.
Enter Bennett - a two-time Stanley Cup champion and the reigning Conn Smythe Trophy winner with the Florida Panthers. His inclusion raises eyebrows not because of his play, but because he, too, is dealing with an injury.
Bennett exited Monday night’s game against the Buffalo Sabres with an upper-body issue and missed Tuesday’s practice. Florida head coach Paul Maurice labeled him day-to-day, suggesting there’s optimism he’ll be ready in short order.
Still, it’s a calculated risk by Team Canada to bring in a player who’s not at 100% - at least not yet.
That said, Bennett’s resume speaks for itself. At 29, he’s in the midst of what could be a career year, already tallying 19 goals and 23 assists in 55 games.
His previous high was 51 points in 76 games last season, and he’s on pace to surpass that. He’s been a physical, high-energy presence down the middle for Florida, and his playoff pedigree is exactly the kind of intangible Team Canada values when the stakes are highest.
Cirelli, 28, has been solid this season with 35 points in 49 games, and like Bennett, he’s no stranger to international play - both were part of Canada’s roster at last year’s 4 Nations Face-Off tournament. But in terms of offensive upside and postseason experience, Bennett brings a bit more flash - and perhaps a bit more bite - to Canada’s bottom six.
This roster tweak comes as NHL teams approach the Olympic break, with the league set to pause after Thursday’s games. It marks the first time since Sochi 2014 that NHL players will compete in the Winter Olympics, and expectations are sky-high for a Canadian squad loaded with top-tier talent.
Swapping one proven two-way center for another is a luxury few nations can afford, and while Cirelli’s absence is a blow, Bennett’s arrival keeps Canada’s forward group deep, dangerous, and battle-tested. If he’s healthy, he could be a difference-maker. And if he finds the same playoff gear that won him the Conn Smythe, watch out - Canada just got a little tougher to play against.