“I think just because you’re named early, everyone wants to earn their spot,” McDavid said. “It’s an incredible honor to be named to that team, whether that was (in June) or today. It’s an incredible honor to represent your country at the Olympics, the biggest sporting event in the world.”

McDavid was anxious to see who would fill out the rest of the Canada roster Wednesday. Canada named 14 forwards, eight defensemen and three goalies to the team.

“I’m excited it’s getting closer and obviously with the roster announcement today, it gets more real and you start to picture some of those faces that will be there with you on the team and playing together,” McDavid said. “I think there’s a ton of work that goes into it, the GMs go around scouting guys, the coaches paying attention too. I think there is always conversation going on between those guys, how they picture the team, how they picture using guys in different situations. I think this team could be built a number of different ways and obviously this is the way they decided to go with it.”

Canada has won gold the past two Olympic men’s hockey tournaments featuring NHL players, defeating Sweden 3-0 in the final at Sochi 2014, and the United States 3-2 in overtime in Vancouver 2010.

Finland is the defending Olympic champions, winning gold in Beijing 2022.

Edmonton has 15 games in January and two in February before the Olympic break. McDavid said he wants to be at his best when the puck drops in Milano.

“It’s more rounding out your game, you want to make sure the details are there,” McDavid said. “I know that’s cliche, but playing the 4 Nations, it was playoff hockey, and you need to be ready. Every aspect of your game needs to be ready to roll.”

It is hard to imagine McDavid playing much better than he is right now, but on a team full of elite players, it would not be surprising to see him elevate his game to a new level at the Olympics.

“You think about how good Connor is, if he’s going to get better, Hockey Canada is going to get one heck of a player, they’re already getting one,” Knoblauch said. “His game speaks a lot, he’s the best, he’s tremendous and right now, I’m seeing him probably on top of his game.”