Canadian world junior captain Brayden Yager on 'mesmerizing' time with Crosby

Brayden Yager was the new face in town.

The Pittsburgh Penguins were holding training camp in September 2023. Sidney Crosby made the youngster feel right at home.

"He's one of the best, if not the best, players to ever play the game," Yager said of the superstar captain with three Stanley Cup rings and two Olympic gold medals. "You get a kid that comes in and he's talking to you like you're just another one of the boys. For him to treat people the way he treats people is unbelievable.

"You try to be a sponge and learn as much as you can. It was pretty mesmerizing."

Subsequently traded to the Winnipeg Jets for fellow top prospect Rutger McGroarty after the winger refused to sign in the Manitoba capital, Yager is looking to use some of the tools he gleaned from Crosby as he captains Canada at the world junior hockey championship.

"To wear the Maple Leaf is what you dream of," said the 19-year-old centre. "With a team full of leaders, it's such an honour."

"The biggest thing for me with Sid was just watching him," Yager added later. "Leads by example with everything he does. It's all about the team."

The Saskatoon product has taken that to heart at the under-20 tournament in the nation's capital, where Canada will meet Czechia in Thursday's quarterfinals.

Yager, who had two goals and five points at last year's event when the country finished a disappointing fifth after a loss to the Czechs, has embraced a shutdown role at the event with one assist as attention turns to the knockout round.

Selected with the 14th pick at the 2023 NHL draft, Yager had 35 goals and 60 assists for the Western Hockey League's Moose Jaw Warriors last season. The six-foot, 170-pound centre added 27 points (11 goals, 16 assists) in 20 playoff