Twenty-five players will compete for the Canadian women's hockey team at the Rivalry Series tournament later this week as Hockey Canada moves closer to identifying the players who will defend gold at the Olympics.
With less than 100 days left before the world's best female hockey players gather in Milan, Italy, this year's Canada-USA rivalry series will provide a crucial test for players on the verge of making the roster.
It's also a rare chance for the team to experiment with line combinations and chemistry, as the Canadians only have four games to play together before the Olympics begin in February.
The first game of the Rivalry Series begins Thursday in Cleveland, Ohio, followed by a game in Buffalo, New York, on Saturday.
The Rivalry Series will conclude with two games in Edmonton on Dec. 10 and 13, and Hockey Canada will likely name a different lineup for those final two games.
“These four games are more than just a mini-competition between two rival countries; they remain an important benchmark for us as we continue to prepare for the 2026 Winter Olympics,” said Canadian Grandmaster Gina Kingsbury.
“We've focused our training blocks on honing our personality on the ice and paying attention to the details that we believe will contribute to our success. Four games is an important step in that process, and we're excited to see how it all comes together on the ice.”
In previous seasons, Olympic hopefuls lived and trained together in one centralized location for several months while working to build a team.
But the PWHL has changed Hockey Canada's approach to team selection. Instead of concentrating in one location for months, 30 Olympic hopefuls attended three training blocks across the country this fall.
Fights in the camp
The 25-player roster for the U.S. leg of the Rivalry Series includes all three NCAA players seeking to make their first Olympic team: guard Chloe Primerano (University of Minnesota), forward Caitlin Kremer (University of Minnesota Duluth) and goalie Yves Gascón (University of Minnesota Duluth).
If she makes the Olympic team, Primerano will become the youngest player to do so since Marie-Philippe Poulin at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.
The first two games of the Rivalry Series will feature a majority of the team's veterans, including Captain Poulin (Montreal Victoires), Blair Turnbull (Toronto Sceptres), Sarah Fillier (New York Sirens), Natalie Spooner (Toronto Sceptres) and Sarah Nurse (PWHL Vancouver).
Missing from the training camp roster are Ottawa Charge teammates Emily Clarke, who is recovering from off-season surgery, and Brianna Jenner.
On defense, the team will be without veteran defender Jocelyne Larocque (Ottawa Charge) and Montreal Victoire newcomer Nicole Gosling.
With several returnees from the 2022 Olympic gold-winning team and players like two-time Walter Cup winner Sophie Jacques vying for a spot, the blue line will likely be where Hockey Canada will have to make some of its toughest decisions.
As a result, Canadian starter Anne-Renee Desbien (Montreal Victoire) will not take part in the Rivalry Series. Instead, the team will get a thorough look at its options at the second and third goaltender positions: longtime Canadian backup Emerance Maschmeyer (PWHL Vancouver) and newcomers Gascón and Cale Osborne (New York Sirens).
Twenty-three players will make the final Olympic roster.
PWHL camps will open later this week
With so few games together leading up to the Olympics, head coach Troy Ryan said the staff is making sure to build chemistry in practice blocks.
It could be the mixing and matching on defense or the bonds that develop when players live together during training camps. Or it could be the ability of Poulin and Daryl Watts, two of women's hockey's most accomplished players, to find each other on the ice with creative passes.
But there's nothing better than seeing your players together in a game against Canada's archrival.
“Usually with centralization we do 30 to 50 games as a preparation group and now that group will get four games together before they go to the Olympics,” Ryan said at Canada's training camp in September. “In these four games we will probably play some people who are on the verge of qualifying for the Olympics. [team]”
PWHL training camps open league-wide on Friday, with players on Team Canada and the United States expected to report to their teams on Sunday.
The league will also play a key role in decision-making for Canadian leadership. PWHL teams will play half of the regular season before the league goes on hiatus before the Olympics in late January.
The PWHL regular season opens Nov. 21 when the Scepters visit Minnesota Frost for a repeat playoff game. Later that evening, PWHL Vancouver will host Seattle in the league's debut of expansion teams.
Canadian lineup for the first two games of the Rivalry Series
Forward
- Laura Stacey (Montreal-Victoire/Kleinburg, Ontario)
- Sarah Filet (New York Sirens/Georgetown, Ontario)
- Caitlin Kremer (University of Minnesota Duluth, NCA/WATERLOO, ON)
- Sarah Nurse (PWHL Vancouver/Hamilton, ON)
- Natalie Spooner (Toronto Skepres/Scarborough, Ontario)
- Emma Maltais (Toronto Skepres/Burlington, ON)
- Marie-Philip Poulin (Montreal-Victoire/Beauceville, Quebec)
- Hannah Miller (PWHL Vancouver/North Vancouver, BC)
- Blair Turnbull (Toronto Skepres/Stellarton, NC)
- Christine O'Neill (New York Sirens/Oakville, Ontario)
- Julia Gosling (PWHL, Seattle/London, Ontario)
- Daniel Serdachny (PWHL Seattle/Edmonton)
- Jennifer Gardiner (PWHL Vancouver/Surrey, BC)
- Daryl Watts (Toronto Sceptres/Toronto)
Defense
- Sophie Jacques (PWHL Vancouver/Toronto)
- Chloe Primerano (University of Minnesota, NCAA/North Vancouver, BC)
- Katie Tabin (Montreal-Victoire/Winnipeg)
- Renata Fast (Toronto Sceptres/Burlington, Ontario)
- Ella Shelton (Toronto Skepres/Ingersoll, Ontario)
- Erin Ambrose (Montreal-Victoire/Keswick, Ontario)
- Mika Zandi-Hart (New York Sirens/Saanichton, BC)
- Claire Thompson (PWHL Vancouver/Toronto)
Goalkeepers
- Eva Gascón (University of Minnesota Duluth, Nkaa/Terrebonne, Quebec)
- Emerance Maschmeyer (PWHL Vancouver/Bruderheim, Alta.)
- Cale Osborne (New York Sirens/Ottawa)
