For players vying to make the Canadian women's Olympic hockey team, two Rivalry Series games against the United States this week could be an opportunity to cement their spots on the team.
Wednesday and Saturday's games in Edmonton (both airing at 9:00 pm ET on TSN) will be the national team's final tune-up before Canada's first Olympic Games in February.
It's also the last opportunity for head coach Troy Ryan and his staff to make changes and experiment before committing.
“These final two games are critical in our preparation for the Cortina Games in Milan in less than 70 days,” general manager Gina Kingsbury said when the squad was named last week. “We are confident that we have created a group that will give us a chance to succeed as we complete the series in front of our fans and hometown audience.”
In the first two games, Canada was outplayed by the United States and lost 10-2.
But the lineup will look a little different in Edmonton.
In two November games, the Canadian team started rookies Cale Osborne (New York Sirens) and Yves Gascón (University of Minnesota Duluth) in net.
Starting goalie Anne-Renee Debien (Montreal Victoire) was left out of the squad for rest but will return to Team Canada this week. Debiens and longtime reserve Emerance Maschmeyer, who earned a shutout for the Vancouver Goldeneyes over the weekend, are expected to start the final two games.
Several other veterans will also return to Team Canada, including Ottawa Charge teammates Brianne Jenner, Jocelyne Larocque and Emily Clarke, the latter of whom was still recovering from injury during the November international window. Montreal Victoire rookie defender Nicole Gosling will also get a chance.
To make room, several players who appeared in November were dropped from the squad. They include Gascón, defensemen Mika Zandi-Hart (New York Sirens) and Kati Tabin (Montreal Victoire), and Vancouver Goldeneyes forward Hannah Miller, whose eligibility to play for Canada is still in the hands of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). Vancouver's Sarah Nurse, who is on long-term injured reserve, will also not play in the Rivalry Series.
All of the players who have competed in the Rivalry Series this season come from a group of 30 who attended training with Hockey Canada throughout the fall. Only 23 players can make the Olympic roster.
With that in mind, TSN hockey analyst Cheryl Pounder isn't worried about the Canadians, who have veteran players with plenty of winning experience.
“I don't think it's necessarily a prediction or an omen of what's to come,” Pounder, who will be part of CBC's Olympics coverage, told Hockey North. “But I can see that there are holes or areas that they need to improve that they will certainly clean up.”
Compound fights
Overall, the only spot available is the third goalie spot behind Debiens and Maschmeyer. Osborne is unlikely to see action at the Rivalry Series, but she will have a chance to continue to showcase her abilities as a starter for the Sirens when the PWHL resumes play next week.
Most of the forward positions are also in contention, with a number of veterans likely to return from the 2022 squad, including Marie-Philip Poulin (Montreal-Victoire), Laura Stacey (Montreal-Victoire), Blair Turnbull (Toronto Sceptres) and Sarah Fillier (New York Sirens).
The most interesting battle at this position may come at the end of the lineup, where multiple players are vying for multiple spots.
Julia Gosling (Seattle Torrent), Christine O'Neill (New York Sirens), Danielle Serdachny (Seattle Torrent), Caitlin Kremer (University of Minnesota Duluth) and Jennifer Gardiner (Vancouver Goldeneyes) are among the players looking to secure a spot in Edmonton this week.
Gosling, in particular, has excelled in her first three games with Torrent and has shown a fantastic shot. She could also be a valuable player on the power play for Team Canada, where she can shoot from deep or play a Natalie Spooner-style role in front of the net. She recorded time on the Canadian power play during the November games.
Meanwhile, O'Neal played in all situations for New York. Nobody in the PWHL has won more faceoffs than O'Neill, who has been Team Canada's fourth-line center the past couple of seasons.
Newbies and veterans
On defense, the locks are Renata Fast (Toronto Scepter), Ella Shelton (Toronto Scepter), Erin Ambrose (Montreal Victoire) and Claire Thompson (Vancouver Goldeneyes). That leaves six players vying for the likely three spots.
Veteran guard Larocque is a solid option for one of those spots. Milan-Cortina will be her fourth Olympic Games and Larocque could bring some peace of mind from the ice, having done and seen just about everything in her career.
Two-time Walter Cup winner Sophie Jacques (Vancouver Goldeneyes) and 18-year-old Chloe Primerano (University of Minnesota), two smart guards with strong offensive instincts, should turn heads in the bottom two spots.
Pounder didn't think Jacques or Primerano performed well in the first two games of the Rivalry Series.
“But I see a situation where they are both on this team,” she said.
Pounder suggested that either of them could end up on the team's third pairing alongside a consistent veteran like Larocque. Last season, she played alongside Primerano while competing for Team Canada.
Smaller ice
One factor the team won't be able to prepare for in Edmonton is skating on a smaller-than-expected ice surface at the Olympics.
Both Milan ice rinks will be smaller than NHL rinks, measuring approximately 196.85 by 85.3 feet, according to the IIHF. NHL-sized ice measures 200 by 85 feet.
The IIHF brushed aside concerns about the smaller ice size in a statement released Monday.
“While these dimensions are slightly different from a typical NHL rink, they comply with IIHF rules, are the size of the rink used at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, and are fully consistent with the dimensions that the NHL requires as part of its arena specifications for Global Series games,” the statement said.
“All participants – IIHF, Organizing Committee, NHL, NHLPA, [International Olympic Committee] and the appropriate facility authorities agree that the differences in rink performance are minor and should not affect either safety or quality of play.”
But Pounder sees how the smaller ice size will change the game. With less room to maneuver, things can become more physical. Small bursts of speed will also be important.
According to Pounder, this could help a player like Jacques, who has the toughest passing game in the game.
“Do I think this will be the deciding factor at this stage of the game?” she said. “I don't think so. But it does affect how you play.”
Canada's women's Olympic hockey team is expected to be named in January.
The team will open the Olympic tournament against Finland on February 5 at 3:10 pm ET.
