Marie-Philip Poulin and Natalie Spooner will headline Canada’s 23-player roster for next month’s IIHF Women’s World Championship, Canada Hockey announced Thursday. Here’s what you need to know:
- Three goaltenders, 13 forwards and seven defensive players will feature for the defending champion and host. View the complete roster here.
- Danielle Serdachny is the only player set to make her world championship debut, while 18 players who were part of the 2022 gold medal team will compete again this year.
- The 31-game schedule will begin on April 5; Canada plays Switzerland on the first day. The quarterfinals start April 13, the semifinals start April 15 and the gold medal game will take place April 16.
The Athletic’s instant analysis:
Canada is back
This roster — with respect to Poulin, the best player in the world — is highlighted by Spooner.
Spooner missed the last women’s worlds while pregnant with her first child, a son named Rory. She gave birth less than three months ago and she’s already back on the national team. Spooner, 32, got back on the ice for the first time four weeks postpartum. She played in the PWHPA showcases in Tampa and Washington DC over the last two weeks. Canada head coach Troy Ryan was in the stands in DC and must have seen enough in Spooner to…
