CALGARY — Rick Nash will lead Canada in the men's world hockey championship.
The former NHLer and two-time Olympic gold medalist was named general manager Tuesday by Hockey Canada for the tournament scheduled to run May 10-26 in the Czech Republic.
The 39-year-old from Brampton, Ont., was assistant general manager when the Canadiens won silver in the 2022 tournament. Nash, who retired as a player in 2019, is in his third season as director of player development with the Columbus Blue Jackets after two campaigns as special assistant to the general manager .
Nash received endorsements from St. Louis Blues general manager Doug Armstrong, former Anaheim Ducks captain and player relations advisor Ryan Getzlaf, and Hockey Canada executive Scott Salmond after the national program tapped the trio last week to select the country's top NHLers for the tournament. 2026 Olympic Games.
“He brings a wealth of international and NHL experience from his playing career and time as an executive,” Armstrong said of Nash in a statement.
Hockey Canada is looking to use the 2024 and 2025 worlds, along with next year's NHL 4 Nations Face-Off, to gather as much information as possible on players before selecting the roster for the games in Milan and Cortina, Italy.
Nash won gold for Canada as an athlete at the 2010 and 2014 Olympics, and has competed at the World Championships four times, topping the podium once and finishing second twice.
He also won a silver medal at the 2002 World Junior Championships.
Selected first overall by Columbus in the 2002 NHL Draft, Nash scored 437 goals and 368 points for 805 career points in 1,060 games across 15 seasons with the Blue Jackets, New York Rangers and Boston Bruins.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 19, 2024.
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