Adrianna Milani has been viewed as one of Canada's top U-18 forwards. She spoke to THN about representing Canada and the pride she feels in wearing the Maple Leaf.
Peeking out softly behind the collar of Adrianna Milani’s Team Canada uniform is a small maple leaf pendant.
The necklace, Milani told The Hockey News, was something that her U-18 Canadian Team had gotten at their 2025–26 U-18 World Championship campaign. During the tournament, Milani scored a team-high 10 goals in six games, finishing with a total of 13 points in that span.
“It’s been a really good keepsake to have,” she said. “Just kind of a reminder of how lucky we are to be here.”
Milani has been viewed as one of Canada’s biggest up-and-coming forwards in the U-18 division, having already represented Canada internationally last year at the U-18 Worlds. She is one of 40 U-18 invitees at Canada’s U-18 Team Selection Camp taking place at the Richmond Olympic Oval in British Columbia.
The pride behind representing Canada isn’t something she takes lightly.
“Putting on the maple leaf is definitely something that’s pretty hard to describe, and I’m really excited to keep going.”
While only 17, Milani, who is from Oakville, has already committed to playing for the University of Minnesota for the 2026–27 season. This comes after she spent the past three seasons with the Etobicoke Dolphins of the OWHL. She'll enter the NCAA a year earlier than her peers.
In her first year with Etobicoke in 2023–24, Milani put up a strong 19 goals and 12 assists in 41 games — the sixth-highest point total on her team despite being a rookie. She shattered that personal record the season after with 35 goals and 21 assists in 36 games. The forward finished the 2025–26 season, her final one before making the jump to the NCAA, with 34 goals and 34 assists in 33 games.
The freedom to get creative with her offence as a forward, Milani explained, is something that drew her to the position in the first place.
“You can kind of make it your own. So that really sparked my interest for it.”
Milani’s introduction to the game of hockey comes predominantly from her family, though she was quick to note the influence of her mom, Randi, and her twin brother, Camillo, on her pursuit of the sport.
“My mom played at the University of New Hampshire, and she now works for the Tampa Bay Lightning in player development, and I have a twin brother, so hockey has kind of been in our family for a while,” she said. “Just kind of showing up at the rink together has really sparked the love for the game.”
The trickle-down effect of the game of hockey’s influence is a fun one to watch. Milani, once a recipient of said influence from her mom and family, acknowledges how much the game has grown even at her young age, and how it will continue growing in the future.
“It's been amazing seeing the growth of the women’s game and now being at the U-18 level. It’s been really cool to kind of keep the standard going, but also set a new one for younger girls coming after us.”
When it comes to her personal future, Milani has ambitions to continue representing Canada with pride, whether that’s at the upcoming U-18 Worlds, or even farther down the road.
Through it all, that little maple leaf pendant will, as always, serve as a reminder of what it takes to wear it.
“Continuing to wear the Maple Leaf would be a huge honour, and continuing to represent my country is obviously the goal [...] continuing to hopefully make the national team and take the continued steps forward towards 2030.”
