Led by captain and Olympic heroine Marie-Philip Poulin, Canada presented its roster for the World Women’s Hockey Championship on Monday.
Canada’s roster will look like the one that won gold at the Beijing Olympics in February.
Canada opens the tournament on August 25 against Finland in Herning, Denmark. This is the first time that the World Women’s Hockey Championship has been held in the same year as the Winter Games.
The Canadians are also the defending world champions, having defeated the United States 3-2 in overtime in the final of the last tournament in Calgary. Poulin had scored the game-winning goal and she scored twice in the Olympic final.
The representatives of the maple leaf will try to sign two world titles in a row for the first time since a streak of three titles from 1999 to 2001.
“We had a very good year. We won the World Cup, we won the Olympics. We had a moment to celebrate, but now it’s back to work,” mentioned Poulin.
Eighteen of the 23 players named to Canada’s Worlds squad won gold six months ago. Head coach Troy Ryan remains behind the bench.
“I think what we had in Beijing was very special,” forward Blayre Turnbull said. We want to continue to build on this and see how far we can push each other. Even if it’s a quick turn, I don’t think the veterans of the team will hesitate to return to this atmosphere. »
Forward Brianne Jenner, who was named the Olympic tournament’s most valuable player, and starting goaltender Ann-Renée Desbiens are among the players returning to Canada’s roster.
“I love my teammates and I love what we do here,” she said. I love the culture we’ve created and the direction we have for this season and the others to come. I want to be part of it. »
The formation was chosen following a camp held in Calgary. A total of 142 players, including some U18 and U22 hopefuls, took part.
Four members of the Olympic team, Rebecca Johnston, Mélodie Daoust, Natalie Spooner and Claire Thompson, did not report to camp for personal reasons, said Gina Kingsbury, director of hockey operations.
Spooner is pregnant. Thompson, who was an Olympic all-star team, was accepted into medical school.
“These are women who have careers, who are starting families and we care about them,” Kingsbury said. We want our athletes to be happy. They must be satisfied and happy in their personal life to have an impact in our program. We would have liked to be able to count on them, but it opens the door for other athletes to represent Canada. »
Forwards Victoria Bach, Kristin O’Neill and Jessie Eldridge, who were released from Canada’s roster ahead of the Olympics, have been selected to the Worlds squad.
Forward Sarah Potomak is also making a comeback. She competed at the 2017 Women’s Worlds and was released from training ahead of the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics.
Veteran Meaghan Mikkelson will return to the Canadian blue line after recovering from a knee injury that deprived her of a fourth appearance at the Olympic Games.
Canada is part of a five-team group that also includes the United States, Finland, Switzerland and Japan.
The International Ice Hockey Federation (IHGF) prevented Russia from participating in international hockey tournaments due to its invasion of Ukraine.
Czechia, Germany, Sweden, Hungary and Denmark form Group B, which will play its matches in Frederikshavn.
The COVID-19 pandemic has diminished competition for Canadian women over the past two years.
The 2020 and 2021 Women’s Worlds have been canceled until the 2021 Worlds are moved from Nova Scotia to Alberta last summer.
This reshuffle would allow Canada to win a third major title in the space of a year.
“After the end of the season like this, the challenge of a Women’s World Cup in the summer is to give the players enough rest time,” Ryan said. They didn’t have a break during the whole pandemic because they were always on standby and ready to play. They tried to be at the top for three years. »