Canada is gearing up for the Rivalry Series against the USA this week, THNW’s Editor Ian Kennedy and Senior Contributor Cee Benwell look over some of the possibilities about the Canadian roster.
As training continues for the Canadian Olympic team, some players are starting to separate themselves. The Rivalry Series will reveal some of the thinking about who is ultimately on the team in Milano Cortina. THNW’s Editor Ian Kennedy and Senior Contributor Cee Benwell discuss possibilities about the Canadian roster.
BENWELL: I’m sure there are some tricky discussions going on right now in the coaches’ room. So who is on the bubble at this point?
KENNEDY: I think forwards who don’t have a lot of offense have to be on the bubble. I know Canada likes their two-way threats, but some haven’t had the offensive side consistently. This could be the end for Brianne Jenner who really struggled last year, and who was moved to the wing with Canada a few years ago in an attempt to prolong her international time. Kristin O’Neill has a ton to prove in New York and might miss the cut unless she gets off to a hot start. I’d have a hard time taking Emma Maltais unless she’s off to a strong offensive start, although of the two-way forwards, she provides the most off the puck. Even Natalie Spooner, there’s no telling if she is back in form.
BENWELL: Caitlin Kraemer looked great to me, like Jenner but faster. I think Jenner is on the bubble depending on her start with Ottawa. If you want a player with a unique skill set who could break open a game, I think you have to have Spooner on this roster. When I saw them skate in Toronto, she looked noticeably faster. And her net-front ability is invaluable.
KENNEDY: There’s an argument to be made about the Olympics – which is actually why I think the USA is favored right now – in a series, or a long season, you need role players. In a short tournament where it’s one game takes all, you take skill above all. I think that gives Kraemer a good shot at a roster spot.
BENWELL: Yeah true. But you never know in one game, say a situation comes along where you wish you had that one player that would fit that you didn’t bring. But you obviously have to bring your offensive firepower.
KENNEDY: I get it, playing to keep a lead or killing penalties, but let’s be honest, if anyone suggests Poulin et al. can’t kill penalties, they’re wrong. In a long season you save your stars from that extra task. In a short tournament, you put your best players on the ice in any situation that could change the game. Short term if you need a goal should you have taken Jenner/Maltais, or should they have invited Jessie Eldridge? Serdachny is another good example of taking skill. She has some holes in her game, but she also scored in the last two gold-medal games.
BENWELL: You can’t teach clutch goal scoring. It looks like they’re going to play Daryl Watts with Poulin. I can’t wait to see that. I’ll always take whichever side Poulin is on in a winner takes all game. Gosling and Serdachny with Seattle are going to be fascinating to watch – will one of them be noticeably better with that stacked offense? Because I could see the other one being left home.
KENNEDY: Obviously based on her impact with Canada, Serdachny is the favorite there, and I think she’ll thrive in Seattle getting the top six minutes she was denied in Ottawa.
Looking at the blueline, there are certainly similar discussions being had. You can’t look at that blueline and not see a group, likely Kati Tabin, Chloe Primerano, Nicole Gosling, and probably even Micah Zandee-Hart, Sophie Jaques, and Jocelyne Larocque being scrutinized closely as final decisions begin to be made.
BENWELL: Again, based on the practices I watched in Toronto, I had Primerano as probably the fifth best defender after Fast, Shelton, Ambrose, and Thompson. She’s so smooth. Of course, the experience factor means that Larocque, Jaques, and Zandee-Hart are probably right there with her, but I would be shocked if Primerano isn’t on the roster.
I think Larocque will be on the team as well as long as she doesn’t show signs of having slowed down too much when the PWHL season starts.
KENNEDY: Primerano isn’t only skilled, she’s’ highly competitive and a little mean. She can play that skilled, puck transporting game, and then punish you on the puck like Renata Fast does for Canada. I have to believe Larocque will be there for a final hurrah with Canada, although if it means not playing Jaques at this point, it doesn’t feel like the best roster move for Canada overall. Having been at a lot of Rivalry Series and World Championship games the past three years, I still question if Canada shouldn’t be looking at a player like Tabin just to play calm and consistent minutes, which is the role Larocque has held valiantly for a decade. Canada is in a good spot on the blueline, with so much depth. It makes for tough decisions, but it’s hard to go wrong with the talent this team can field on defence.
BENWELL: Another fascinating discussion is around the goalies and whether Emerance Maschmeyer has recovered from her injury. And we might not get a good idea about that if she’s not getting tested with Vancouver.
KENNEDY: I’m at the point where I think Canada is all in on Ann-Renee Desbiens and I expect any other goalie is being watched as relief, or as an injury-replacement option. At this point, I honestly believe Eve Gascon might be the next best option as a starter in a short tournament since Canada has continued to leave Corinne Schroeder out of the mix. Maschmeyer was much better last season, but we have no way to know how she performs after her injury, nor how sharp she’ll be facing reduced pressure in Vancouver.
We’ll see how some of these competitions play out at the Cleveland and Buffalo stops on the Rivalry Series, and when the Series heads to Canada in December, it’s hard not to envision Canada trying to go with a roster much closer to the one they intend to bring to the Milano Cortina Olympics.