Hockey Canada will announce their women's national team roster on January 9. It could give Canada more time to alter their roster, but will they?
Hockey Canada will announce their 2026 women's hockey Olympic roster on January 9 on TSN according to the governing body.
USA Hockey announced their men's, women's and Paralympic rosters together on January 2, live on the TODAY Show. Canada announced their men's Olympic roster on December 31 without mention, or public notification of a women's hockey announcement.
According to a Hockey Canada representative, the later announcement date and flexibility regarding women's hockey roster formalization has given Canada's management additional time to scout players.
Could that additional time result in roster changes for Canada within, or even outside of their 30 player pool that attended multi-week training camps in Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal, and faced USA in the four game Rivalry Series?
Canada, for the first time ever, was swept by USA in the Rivalry Series being outscored 24-7 in those games. That included the first time in Canadian women's national team history the program allowed double digit goals against in a single game, falling 10-4 to USA in game three of the Rivalry Series.
Canada's losses, combined with a silver medal at the hands of USA at the 2025 World Championships prompted calls for change from fans, pointed both at Canada's bench, and their roster itself.
Who left the Rivalry Series on Canada's bubble?
Canada had bubble players at every position including in net where Kayle Osborne and Eve Gascon continued to fight for an opportunity to serve as Canada's third goalie at the Olympics. Gascon was Canada's third goalie at the 2025 World Championships. She's continued her stellar play for the University of Minnesota-Duluth at the NCAA level. Osborne on the other hand has been the PWHL's most active goaltender this season starting all 10 games for the New York Sirens, who after a slow start, find themselves unexpectedly in third place. Arguably, Osborne has also outperformed Vancouver Goldeneyes netminder Emerance Maschmeyer in the PWHL this season as well.
On the blueline, the bubble grows to include Jocelyne Larocque, Nicole Gosling, Kati Tabin, Micah Zandee-Hart, and Chloe Primerano from Canada's 30 player pool. Zandee-Hart has been a rock on the blueline for the Sirens, and earned praise for her play during the opening games of the Rivalry Series as one of the few Canadian defenders not directly responsible for goals against. She however, was left behind for the second leg of the Series. Nicole Gosling was also omitted from the second half of the Series. While she's played well in Montreal, it took her until Montreal's 8th game of the season to register her first point, an assist. Her play however, may have been enough to earn her a roster spot. Primerano is a future stalwart on Canada's blueline, although it's hard to say she's clearly an upgrade at the moment over Canada's PWHL blueliners, while Jocelyne Larocque is at the other end of the spectrum for age. After a solid start to her PWHL season, Larocque's game has again cooled. If she's on the roster, it's at the preference of head coach Troy Ryan, not because she's outplayed others on the bubble. Many believe Primerano is a lock to usher in the next generation and focus on speed and skill. Finally, Kati Tabin was a long shot from the get go for a spot with Canada. Still, she's continued her solid game in Montreal, and could provide more consistency, something Canada has lacked, than others on the bubble.
Up front, Caitlin Kraemer, Danielle Serdachny, Hannah Miller, Natalie Spooner, and Brianne Jenner are seemingly the bubble players for Canada. Serdachny has been the most dangerous for Canada on a number of occasions scoring in the past two gold medal games including the golden goal in overtime at the 2024 World Championships. She's also threatened regularly for the Seattle Torrent and looks ready to emerge as a star in the PWHL. Jenner has been a consistent threat sitting among league leaders in the PWHL, and may have played her way onto Canada's roster for a final time. Kraemer is likely the first player out of this conversation despite her strong play at the NCAA level and the opportunity for her to provide youth to the group. Miller was left off Canada's second Rivalry Series roster, and has not played to expectations after moving to Vancouver this season in the PWHL, while Spooner remains a threat with the Toronto Sceptres, and has history on her side.
Who could Canada be looking at outside the 30?
Outside Canada's 30 player pool there are a plethora of players brass could consider. In net, Hannah Murphy has been strong in the PWHL helping the Seattle Torrent turn the corner after the expansion franchise got out to a slow start.
On the blueline, there's the most potential for Canada to make a positive chance in players like Ashton Bell, Kendall Cooper, and Jaime Bourbonnais. The trio have played well this season in the PWHL, with Bell captaining Vancouver, Cooper showcasing she's a world class defender as a rookie in Minnesota, and Bourbonnais playing a key role in New York's turn around.
Up front, the hot hand of Rebecca Leslie in Ottawa could spark interest, but she spent her entire tenure in Toronto under Hockey Canada's coach and GM relegated to a depth role and didn't find her scoring touch until she moved to Ottawa as a free agent. Anne Cherkowski has played a key role in New York's turnaround, and played at the Rivalry Series for Canada last season as a senior with Clarkson University. She wasn't given a look this summer with Canada's Olympic pool, but has clearly outplayed some who will find themselves on Canada's final roster. Abby Hustler has provided physicality, and played hard checking hockey in Minnesota, all while being one of the Frost's more dangerous offensive players. She looks to have more upside and a higher compete than many Canadian's sitting on the roster to date. Jamie Lee Rattray could be another player to watch after she was removed from Canada's pool last year, as she's played well with first place Boston. While it seems a stretch, Canada could have, and likely should have looked at their own NCAA pool more closely and considered playing Emma Pais, Jocelyn Amos, Stryker Zablocki, Mackenzie Alexander, and Sara Manness at the Rivalry Series. Pais is the top scorer of the bunch and has been a member of Canada's national development team.
While there remains many question marks, it's likely Canada will avoid pulling from outside their 30 player pool, and instead go with a very familiar, veteran roster for the 2026 Olympics in Milano Cortina. Fans will find out for sure on January 9.