Canada's National Team Overhaul Marks The Beginning Of A New Chapter For Canadian Women's Hockey

When Team Canada takes to the ice in Denmark this November, they'll be without Sarah Nurse, Brianne Jenner, Natalie Spooner, Emerance Maschmeyer, Claire Thompson, Marie-Philip Poulin, Blayre Turnbull, Jennifer Gardiner, Julia Gosling, and Jocelyne Larocque who all represented their nation at the 2026 Olympics.

In their place are a group of young players and fresh faces set to challenge Team USA for gold once again.

For the first time in years, Canada's roster is in a place where it is markedly younger, and will only get better, rather than a roster that was noticeably aging, and was only getting worse.

It includes NCAA players Chloe Primerano and Eve Gascon who have had a stint with Canada before, as well as Caitlin Kraemer, Sara Manness, Rosalie Tremblay, and Hayley McDonald who will all make their senior national team debut at a major competition. In fact, for Manness, Tremblay, and McDonald, it will be the first senior national team appearance of their young careers. 

The change is the beginning of a new chapter for Canada. 

By far the oldest team at the 2026 Olympics, 12 members of Canada's silver medal roster in Milan are on the wrong side of 30. Ten of those players are 32 or older, and four are over 35.

The number of 30 or over players at the 2026 World Championships for Canada will drop to six, which includes Rebecca Leslie, who at 30 is making her World Championship debut. But Canada's roster will also have an infusion of youth including teenagers like Tremblay, who just turned 18, McDonald (18), Manness (19), and Primerano (19). Canada also added 20-year-old Kraemer, 23-year-olds Eve Gascon and Sarah Wozniewicz, and 24-year-old Kendall Cooper. 

Overall, Canada's average age will plummet, making it likely USA and Finland will be the oldest teams in Denmark, not Canada. Canada's Olympic roster was 3.30 years older than Finland, and 3.35 older than USA. With both of those nations expected to bring similar rosters back to this tournament. With Jocelyn Larocque, who is 20 years Tremblay and McDonald's senior, along with 35 year olds Marie-Philip Poulin and  Brianne Jenner, and 36-year-old Natalie Spooner out of Canada's lineup, Canada will field a significantly younger roster.

This is the beginning, not the end of Canada's roster makeover. Canada's national team camp included 25 invitees under 25. There's plenty of talent remaining in that pool including Abby Newhook, Anne Cherkowski, Claire Murdoch, Abby Stonehouse, Brooke Disher, Emma Pais, Grace Outwater, Eloise Caron, Emma Venusio, Jocelyn Amos, Sara Swiderski, and Ava Murphy who didn't make this roster.

Canada's best prospects however, those who could challenge for roles next season, may actually be in players who weren't at camp.

Up front, Adrianna Milani, Stryker Zablocki, Sofia Ismael, Caileigh Tiller, Maxine Cimeroni, and Alide Korte were all born in 2007 or later and are all knocking on Canada's national team door. On the blueline, the same could be said for 2006 and younger players like Megan Mossey, Kate Viel, Gracie Graham, Makayla Watson, Kate Manness, Danica Maynard, and Rosalie Breton. Canada's future crease competition is growing stronger by the day as well with Hannah Clark, Rhyah Stewart, Kalia Pharand, Marilou Grenier, Ava Drabyck, Madison Campbell, and Rowan Houweling.

Even the competition from young PWHL players who weren't in Canada's camp, like Abby Hustler and Issy Wunder, will grow in the coming seasons as Canada looks to find the right mix as they build toward the 2030 Olympics.

The 2026 World Championships, and two pre-tournament games against USA will go a long way in signalling to Canada who may be part of the longer term plans, and who they may have jumped the gun at.

Veterans like Rebecca Leslie and Jessie Eldridge will need to prove themselves all over again. Up front Kristin O'Neill has always brought her best game, including her trademark speed and two-way acumen to Team Canada, but she'll be relied upon even more at this event. O'Neill was considered a bubble player heading into camp, but not must secure herself as part of the core moving forward. The same can be said for Danielle Serdachny, who has underperformed in the PWHL, but is unquestionably one of Canada's more skilled young forwards. 

On the blueline, Kati Tabin didn't get a good look in Milan to see what she can contribute, and Erin Ambrose looks to bounce back from a subpar 2025-26 season as well. 

In net, Kayle Osborne earned her way to Milan, but then floundered in the second half. She'll be Hamilton's starter in the PWHL, but there's a real push from Raygan Kirk and others to be included in Canada's lineup.

While everyone on Canada's roster seemingly has enough runway left on their careers to make it to 2030, that competition will be fierce. There are no obvious replacements, yet, but with the door now wide open for any young player to show themselves worthy, Canada's rebuild is likely just beginning.