When the 2025 Rivalry Series ended in December, things looked bleak for Team Canada. They'd just been swept for the first time ever in the Series, they lost to USA in overtime at the 2025 World Championships, they allowed a program record 10 goals against in a single game to the Americans, and at the pro level, many of the players set to be selected to their roster were struggling.

Fast forward to the days leading up to the 2026 Olympics in Milano Cortina, and while USA remains the favorite, things have been trending upward for Canada.

No goaltender in the PWHL has a better goals against average or save percentage than Ann-Renee Desbiens. She's the reigning PWHL Goaltender of the Year, and while USA's Aerin Frankel and her Boston Fleet have stolen headlines for outperforming all expectations, Desbiens is speaking through her stats. And stats don't lie. Desbiens leads all goalies with a 1.15 GAA and .954 save percentage. Those are numbers you won't find in any league, not the NHL, not the PWHL. Desbiens punctuated her pre-Olympic stretch in the PWHL with a 3-0 shutout in her final game, which tied her for most shutouts in the league with Frankel, and fellow Team Canada goalie Kayle Osborne.

There remains a significant portion of Canada's all-PWHL roster that aren't producing at a rate that inspires confidence. Of the top 15 Canadian forwards in scoring in the PWHL, only nine were named to Canada's Olympic roster, although if you looked at points per game, Sarah Nurse would sky roster into that group having played only five games this season. That said, there are players, including the now healthy and thriving Sarah Nurse who has six points in those five games, who are giving hope to Canadians. Brianne Jenner has played inspired hockey this season leading all Canadians with 15 points in 16 games. After going nine games in 2025 without a point, Emily Clark is starting to show signs of heating up. For the most part, she was getting chances and creating opportunities, the bounces just weren't coming. Scoring in her final game before the break should give her, and Canada, another reason to hope.

If there's one player Canada should look to for a bigger contribution, it's Julia Gosling. She's been one of the best in the PWHL this season, and looks ready to take the place of Natalie Spooner and Brianne Jenner as Canada's next power forward. Her six goals and 12 points with the Seattle Torrent has Gosling in the top 10 in PWHL scoring, and she's been using her size effectively, along with her heavy shot, to generate scoring. Together with Daryl Watts, Gosling gives Canada their best fresh look over past rosters. Watts and Gosling only joined Canada's national program after the 2022 Olympics. 

If there's one area of Canada's roster that hasn't really found its way, it's their blueline. Renata Fast, Erin Ambrose, and Jocelyne Larocque are all having what could easily be described as the worst seasons of their career, not just statistically, but in their all-around defensive play as well. None have scored in the PWHL this season. Each has been prone to giveaways, with Larocque's final PWHL performance featuring a blatant giveaway leading directly to a goal against, harkening to her giveaway that resulted in USA's overtime winner at Worlds. Ambrose looks to have lost a step this season, and is not playing with the confidence she had two seasons ago when she was named the PWHL Defender of the Year. Fast may be the most surprising in this regard, recording only three assists through 12 games after notching 22 points in 30 games last year for the Toronto Sceptres. Her typical puck-moving game, where she has freely transported the puck and used her physicality to defend, has looked less decisive, and mired by decision-making lapses this season. Ella Shelton has been steady with Toronto this season, but her transition to a new team hasn't gone as planned either as she's also on pace for career lows statistically.

Whenever Marie-Phillip Poulin is on the ice, there is hope. She's a player that tournament after tournament steps up and finds ways to put Team Canada on her back with clutch goals, physical dominance, and timely momentum swings. With Ann-Renee Desbiens' play through January, there is hope for Canadians in the idea that she could shut the door on any given night. The last two gold medal games between Canada and USA have turned into high scoring, wide open contests. It would be a disastrous mistake for Troy Ryan to allow his team to attempt a head-to-head scoring contest with USA, but in a shutdown game, with Canada's veterans knowing this is the last chance for gold for this core, anything can happen.