So here’s where we’re at: Canada plays Czechia this morning to kick off their Olympic tournament, and John Cooper still won’t tell us who’s starting in net.

All he’ll say is that two guys will rotate through the first two games, which honestly just makes this whole thing more interesting.

And look, we all know why this is complicated. Jordan Binnington is at these Olympics because of what he did last February at the 4-Nations Face-Off. That’s just the reality. He was incredible when the lights were brightest, and the competition was best-on-best. That performance is literally why he’s here. Cooper knows it. You know it. Binnington definitely knows it.

But here’s the thing — does that February performance actually earn him the starting job now?

If you’re going purely off recent play, it’s tough to make that case. Binnington’s NHL season hasn’t exactly been dominant. But if you’re talking about performance when it actually mattered, when he was facing the kind of hockey he’ll see at the Olympics? Then yeah, absolutely, he deserves it.

This is Cooper’s problem right now. What matters more — what Binnington’s done over the past few months, or what he proved he could do when the pressure was cranked up to maximum? Because let’s be honest, the hockey at the 4-Nations Face-Off was the real deal. That’s the closest thing to Olympic intensity you’re going to get, and Binnington was outstanding.

Think about it this way: this morning’s game against Czechia isn’t going to look like a random Tuesday night game in January. The speed, the skill level, the way every shift matters — that’s 4-Nations Face-Off hockey. That’s the exact environment where we’ve already seen Binnington succeed. His competition might have better save percentages lately, but none of them have been tested like that and come through the way he did.

Still, Cooper’s playing it coy for a reason. Maybe he’s not completely convinced. Maybe he wants to see it with his own eyes before fully committing. Maybe he’s just being smart and keeping his options open. Hard to blame him — goalies can be unpredictable, and you don’t get second chances at the Olympics.

Whatever happens, we’re going to see Binnington play at some point in these first two games. And when we do, that’s when things get real. Can he show everyone that February wasn’t just a hot streak? Can he prove he’s still that guy who stood on his head against the world’s best?

Because that’s what the Olympics do — they strip away all the excuses and all the context. It’s just you, the puck, and the biggest stage in hockey. Binnington’s already proven once that he can handle that moment.

This morning, or maybe the game after, we’ll find out if he can do it again.

Celebrini – McDavid – Wilson

Hagel – MacKinnon – Reinhart

Marner – Crosby – Stone

Marchand – Horvat – Suzuki

Toews – Makar

Morrissey – Parayko

Theodore – Sanheim

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