Sidney Crosby’s status for Canada’s Olympic semifinal against Finland is up in the air, and while the hockey world holds its breath waiting for clarity, a genuinely compelling question has emerged: if the Pittsburgh Penguins captain can’t suit up, who steps in and wears the ‘C’ against the Finns?

Under IIHF rules, every team must dress a captain, so Canada can’t leave the captaincy question unaddressed. And when you look up and down the Canadian roster, the options are nearly endless.

You have guys like Mark Stone, Nick Suzuki and Connor McDavid, captains of their respective NHL teams, and a plethora of other players wearing the ‘A,’ like Drew Doughty, one of two players, alongside Crosby, who played in Sochi in 2014. Or others like Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Brad Marchand, Bo Horvat, Travis Sanheim, Colton Parayko, Tom Wilson or Josh Morrissey.

The one that makes the most sense, though, is McDavid. On pace to smash Olympic records, he’s already worn an alternate ‘A’ alongside Crosby at these Olympics, and at last year’s 4 Nations Face-Off. Sliding him into the captaincy role feels less like a promotion and more like an acknowledgment of what’s already been happening on the ice anyway.

With Makar already wearing an ‘A’, MacKinnon, would be a leader to don the other, with his intensity and leadership pedigree speaking itself. The future is undeniably bright for Macklin Celebrini, but he might have to wait a while longer for that particular milestone.

Head coach Jon Cooper has been watching McDavid’s evolution throughout this tournament with what sounds like genuine admiration, and he hasn’t been shy about saying so.

“Everybody was looking to Sid in that tournament. Guys like (Drew) Doughty and (Brad) Marchand, the guys that have been there for a number of years, were the more vocal guys who stepped up,” Cooper said, via Sportsnet. “But I’m seeing much more out of the group now, especially Connor.

“Not that he wasn’t comfortable, but I think there was a lot of uncertainty, especially because we hadn’t seen best-on-best and this group hadn’t been together for so long. In this tournament, he’s been fabulous.”

Players around McDavid, like Doughty, who he’s battled with in the first round of the NHL playoffs four years in a row, have taken notice. But those non-Olympic battles all get pushed to the side with this best-on-best tournament being its own unique animal. The best of the best have been parachuted together from across the league, asked to build trust and find chemistry on an accelerated timeline, in the highest-pressure environment the sport has.

“Never played against a player like him in my entire career,” said Doughty, via Sportsnet. “Great guy off the ice, fun to hang around. And then when it’s game time, he’s dialled in and ready to go. And he puts that jersey on, and he’s the best player on the ice every night. It’s crazy.”

When Doughty, who has two Olympic gold medals and two Stanley Cup rings, talks about McDavid in those terms, it lands differently than any generic compliment.

He knows replacing what Crosby brings as a player is a tall order.

“It’s almost impossible to fill the player void. But we’ll do our best.”

The depth of riches for Canada is truly there, but like it would be if this was NHL play, it’s next man up.

Finland, meanwhile, will test Canada in ways that require more than just McDavid. They’re a structured, hard-to-crack team that forces opponents to be disciplined and structurally sound. Canada has the horses to handle the challenge, with or without their captain in the lineup.

A berth to the Gold Medal game is on the line, and for a group of players that have spent their entire careers chasing moments like this, there doesn’t need to be much of a spark to find motivation. The ‘C’ question is fascinating, but whoever ends up wearing it, Canada is ready to go.