Canadian forward Maddie McCullough notched two goals and two assists, while Rachel Piggott and Sofia Ismael both contributed three points to the scoreboard, to help lift the red and white to an impressive 8-1 over Czechia at U18 women's worlds Saturday night in Sydney. Canada goes for gold next.
SYDNEY, N.S. — Dominance was the name of the game for Canada when they faced Czechia in semifinal action Saturday night at Centre 200 in Sydney, with veteran U18 forward Maddie McCullough scoring two goals and adding two assists to help lead the red and white to an impressive 8-1 win.
Close to 3,800 fans filled the stands, creating a sea of red and white jerseys, flags, and homemade signs.
The goal-scoring started quickly from the first puck drop.
McCullough opened the scoring on a powerplay just two minutes into the game, with an assist from blueliner Megan Mossey, setting the pace for the remainder of the game.
Czechia's frustration showed itself quickly, and another penalty cost them a goal at 4:46 in the first, allowing forward Laurie Aubin to notch one off helpers from Kendall Doiron and Caileigh Tiller.
Rachel Piggott potted her first seconds later to make it 3-0, forcing Czechia to switch its goaltender from starter Lili Chmelarova to Veronika Ortova before the first intermission.
The move was a smart one for Team Czechia, with the two teams trading penalties throughout a scoreless second period.
Less than a minute into the third period, alternate captain Lucie Sindelarova was finally able to solve Canadian netminder Lea-Rose Charrois, while shortanded with help from forward Andrea Kantorova and blueliner Johanna Tischler, to make it 3-1 early in the final frame.
But from that point on, the Canadians regained control in order to secure the spot in Saturday's gold medal game against the United States, clearly determined to defend their world title.
The goals came one after another, starting with a powerplay marker from Adriana Milani, who added another just over a minute later to make it 5-1, followed by another with the player advantage from McCullough.
Linemates Rachel Piggott and Sofia Ismael finished it off late in the third for the 8-1 final,
Canada's National Women's Under-18 Team will face off against the Americans on the final day of world championship action on Sunday, Jan. 18. The puck drops on the gold medal game at 7:30 p.m. Atantic TIme (AT) in Centre 200 and live on TSN.
"I thought our first half was a little bit rocky," forward Adrianna Milani said, "but coming into the second half of that game, especially the third period, I thought we really pulled it together and stuck to what we knew."
She credited "some amazing fans" inside Centre 200, adding, "I'm really looking forward to what they can bring tomorrow."
"Moving pucks low to high, it spreads out that PK, it allows us to get those shots on net, so that's where those goals came from," McCullough added.
As for going for gold, MIlani said, "it's going to be a really hard and physical game, but I'm really confident in the depth that we have with our team, and that if we stick to our habits and our structure, we're going to be really successful."
Earlier Saturday, the United States handily defeated Sweden 9-1 to earn its berth to the gold medal game, while Hungary beat Finland 7-5 in relegation, marking the first time the Finns have been relegated from the top division in U18 women's worlds action.
Sweden and Czechia will compete for bronze at 3:30 p.m. AT.
"We are proud of our girls," Czechia head coach Dusan Andrasovsky said following his team's tough loss.
"They fought a lot but we made many stupid mistakes and we (lost) the game because of it," he said. "It's all experience for us and tomorrow we will play... smarter."
He admitted the Canadian powerplays created problems, and pointed out the hard-fought second period. Now, he said, it's time to stop thinking about the past and start focusing on the future. "We need to get a long sleep and be ready for tomorrow."
Czechia alternate captain Lucie Sindelerova agreed that she and her teammates have to "cool down and be ready for tomorrow."
"Tomorrow will be very hard," but she said with three games against Sweden under the country's belt this season, Czechia is well-prepared for what to expect on the ice when they face off for bronze on the final day of 2026 U18 women's worlds action.
"One day at a time, we've learned and we've grown," Canada's head coach Vicky Sunohara told media, adding "it's hard sometimes when you're winning by higher scores, you can... get away with some things."
Large scoring gaps have been a consistent theme throughout this short-term international tournament, which is concerning for many women's hockey followers.
"It changes from year to year a little but," Sunohara said, adding some teams fell ill this week, and that it's obvious that teams like Czechia and Sweden "aren't backing down."
"You can tell from the drop of the puck that they had a lot of confidence," she said.
Canada has won gold at the IIHF Under-18 Women's World Championship eight times since its inception in 2008. The United States have claimed the coveted world championship trophy, considered the equivalent to the men's World Junior title, nine times total.
"It means the world," Milani said of having the chance to play for gold on Canadian home ice Sunday. "This world tournament has been a dream come true, and to do it front of our home crowd here in Cape Breton is unbelievable."
Added McCullough, "tomorrow's the big one."
"It's win or go home, it's the gold medal, and the U.S. is our rival, so we want to make sure it's a big one, in front of our crowd — make them proud."