Looking at Canada and USA's goaltending heading into the 2026 Olympics, both teams have familiar faces that appear to be destined for crease time in Milano Cortina, Italy.
USA's national team camp in Lake Placid in August brought together 30 players. The vast majority have World Championship or Olympic experience with USA. The three goaltenders USA brought together for the camp were Ottawa Charge goalie Gwyneth Philips, Boston Fleet netminder Aerin Frankel, and Wisconsin goaltender Ava McNaughton, the identical trio that travelled to Czechia last spring bringing home gold medals.
Canada will bring back starter Ann-Renee Desbiens of the Montreal Victoire, as well as newly minted PWHL Vancouver starter Emerance Maschmeyer. Also back is Minnesota-Duluth star Eve Gascon, and Canada also invited New York Sirens goalie Kayle Osborne.
Were There Notable Omissions?
It's hard to imagine national programs on the men's side leaving home NHL goalies in favour of NCAA players. Ava McNaughton and Eve Gascon could be in the PWHL right now, which is why neither of these selections rock the boat.
Still, in an Olympic year, with the level of competition all of these netminders are now facing each week, the risk for injury is real, and neither nation fully stocked their cupboard at camps this summer. Canada brought a third professional goalie in Kayle Osborne, but the nation arguably left more big-game-ready goalies, and certainly more experience, at home. Corinne Schroeder was the most notable Canadian absence, and while some will see the departure of Kristen Campbell from Team Canada as understandable given the fact it was a known part of the breakdown between Campbell and the Toronto Sceptres, she's been a national team cog for years.
On the American side, the biggest omission from camp was undoubtedly Maddie Rooney. Rooney won the starting job with the Minnesota Frost last year, beating out another former American national team member in Nicole Hensley. Rooney has done it all winning Olympic gold, World Championship gold, and two Walter Cups. It seems short sighted by USA Hockey to not bring another professional goalie into the mix in the event Frankel or Philips is injured, and Rooney is the logical choice.
Injuries Are Always A Concern
In the new PWHL era, many of the selected goalies have already faced significant injuries. Ann-Renee Desbiens was placed on long term injured reserve last year returning just in time for the World Championships. The reigning PWHL Goaltender of the Year bounced back in fine form, but the risk remains. Emerance Maschmeyer hasn't played a game since early March following an injury of her own that allowed Philips to steal the starting job in Ottawa. On the American side, Aerin Frankel was knocked out of the gold medal game at Worlds, which Philips stepped in to save the day. Frankel's short absence may have cost the Boston Fleet a playoff spot. It's highly possible one of the goalies in camp this summer will be banged up come February. If it's one of USA or Canada's pro goalies, the nations may have hoped in retrospect that they kept closer touch to other PWHL netminders.
Best In The World
No matter what nation you look at, there is not a country in the world capable of matching Canada and USA in the crease. Aerin Frankel is a two-time nominee for PWHL Goaltender of the Year and a former Patty Kazmaier winner. Philips won NCAA Goaltender of the Year the season following Frankel, was a PWHL All-Rookie Team member and the Playoff MVP last season. Ann-Renee Desbiens is the reigning PWHL Goaltender of the Year. And Frankel, Maschmeyer, and Desbiens have all been named Best Goaltender at the World Championships in the past. No other nation can boast this success. When looking at the PWHL, on Finland's Sanni Ahola and Germany's Sandra Abstreiter represent nations outside North America. Klara Peslarova (Czechia) and Emma Soderberg (Sweden) both had stints in the PWHL before returning to Europe. Perhaps the most elite national team netmidner outside North America currently is Switzerland's Andrea Brandli. No goalie, however, stacks up to the skill of Canada and USA's crease keepers.