There may not be a stronger goaltending duo in the PWHL than Vancouver’s tandem of Kristen Campbell and Emerance Maschmeyer. The two goaltenders, each with a wealth of international experiences and gold medals to their names, are not just successful as individuals, but as partners as well.
“I think right now we have each other on speed dial, we’ve been chatting quite a bit,” Maschmeyer joked during an interview with The Hockey News. “I know I’m very excited to work with Kristen, we have a great relationship, she’s a good friend of mine.”
PWHL Vancouver isn’t the first team that Campbell and Maschmeyer have played on together. The two goaltenders have both represented Team Canada at nearly every IIHF World Championship since 2021, with the only tournament not boasting both of their talents being 2025. Both Campbell and Maschmeyer also joined Team Canada for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. Because of this, the two won’t need the extra time to get to know one-another now that they’re on a new team. In fact, some of their old routines may even carry over to Vancouver.
“We’ve been goalie partners many times now, especially the last Olympic season. Being centralized together, we spent a lot of time at the rink. We had a pact that we were kind of the last ones out of the locker room all the time and we’d wait for one-another, so I’m excited to bring that back and spend time with her off the ice and also on the ice,” Maschmeyer added. “I think we bring the best out of each other and that’s really exciting for us as humans, and as goalie partners, I think we’re going to really set the bar high and really push each other.”
Both on and off the ice, Campbell noted that it’ll be “super fun” to play alongside one of her former goaltending partners with Team Canada. The two goaltenders, each with a plethora of gold medals to their names, play different styles in the net that will make Vancouver a dynamic team to watch from the crease.
“I would say Masch is very agile and athletic. I think for me, I’m a bit bigger, so I like to use a more technical and positional kind of structure,” Campbell explained in terms of how both goaltenders’ playing styles differ and what they can learn from one-another. “I would say she plays an athletic game, so taking some things that she does, and adding those to my game. I think that it’s going to be great to be able to bounce off of each other. I think we bring different things to the table, but at the end of the day, we want the same result for the team, which is to win.”
“I think what’s really exciting is Cara [Garder-Morey] built this team from the crease out, and with a defensive mindset first, and that’s really an exciting thing to hear as a goalie,” Maschmeyer added. “You obviously value the D-zone, so knowing how strong the players will be in front of us will make our jobs easy, but I have full faith in Kristen and I to hold down the fort in the net and make sure that we’re making their lives as easy as possible as well. I think the combination will be lethal.”
Vancouver will be one of the strongest teams in the PWHL up and down the lineup come the 2025–26 season. While offensive stars such as Sarah Nurse, Jenn Gardiner, and Hannah Miller will lead the way for forwards, Campbell, Maschmeyer, and Vancouver’s high-powered blueline will keep things calm around the net. Both goaltenders shared their praise for the players who will be blocking shots and clearing the crease for them.
“[It’s] kind of like a combo of the best of both worlds, when you have defenders that can shut it down, but also help score,” Campbell noted. “Having [Claire] Thompson and [Sophie Jaques] and [Ashton] Bell and those three being in prominent roles on their club teams. I think they bring a lot of offense to the table, not just defence, but obviously they’re really strong defensively too. It’ll be exciting to watch them do their thing and create that offence for the team, and also be really steady on the back end.”
“They’re really strong in front of our net, which will allow us to make the first save and have clear vision of the puck, but also know that if we do let out a rebound that they’ll protect us and move players away from the crease, which is a goalie’s dream,” Maschmeyer said.
PWHL Vancouver is one of the league’s strongest teams in every position of the sport, but it’s their goaltending tandem that has caught the attention of hockey fans. Both goaltenders have earned their respective shares of gold medals — will 2025–26 be the year they add a Walter Cup to their trophy cabinet?