CALGARY, Alta. – Following a week-long selection camp, 45 players have been named to Canada’s National Women’s Development Team and Canada’s National Women’s Under-18 Team for a pair of three-game series against the United States, Aug. 16-19 at the Markin MacPhail Centre in Calgary.

As part of the Team Canada Summer Showcase, a total of 92 players were invited to attend the two camps, which involved on- and off-ice training, classroom sessions and fitness testing. The National Women's Development Team camp also included games against Japan’s national women’s team and a team of U SPORTS all-stars, while the National Women’s Under-18 Team camp include three intrasquad games before players were selected to compete against the United States.

“The opportunity to scout and assess players at our development and under-18 levels is an integral part in the growth and development of our athletes as we embark on a new four-year cycle leading into the 2022 Olympics,” said Gina Kingsbury, Hockey Canada’s director of women’s national teams. “We have built a storied history and rivalry with the Americans and the importance of our games, starting with these three-game series, will allow us to begin to identify those athletes who will be part of our program competing at the highest international level.” 

Canada’s National Women’s Under-18 Team:

From Aug. 16-19, 23 players (3 goaltenders, 7 defencemen and 13 forwards) will compete against the United States. The complete schedule can be found here. Canada’s National Women’s Under-18 Team includes:

• Three players who took part in the 2017 three-game series against the United States (Gosling, MacEachern, Shirley)
• Three players who won a bronze medal with Canada’s National Women’s Under-18 Team at the 2017 IIHF U18 Women’s World Championship in Dmitrov, Russia (Gosling, MacEachern, Shirley)  
• Two players who participated in the 2018 Esso Cup, Canada’s National Female Midget Championship in Bridgewater, N.S. (Shirley, Naud)

Following the series, Hockey Canada, led by Kingsbury in coordination with head scout Melody Davidson, and in consultation with regional scouts and the U18 coaching staff, will continue to assess players with their club teams throughout the first part of the 2018-19 season, in preparation for selecting the Canadian team that will compete at the 2019 IIHF U18 Women’s World Championship, Jan. 6-13, 2019 in Obihiro, Japan. Additionally, all players will be considered for possible invites to camps and events with Canada’s National Women’s Team, including the Fall Festival in September.

Canada’s National Women’s Development Team:

From Aug. 16-19, 22 players  (2 goaltenders, 7 defencemen and 13 forwards) will compete against the United States. The complete schedule can be found here. Canada’s National Women’s Development Team includes:

• 10 players who played for Canada’s National Women’s Development Team at the 2018 Nations Cup in Füssen, Germany (Bell, Bourbonnais, Deguire, Maltais, Munroe, O’Neill, Pozzebon, Shelton, Shirley, Tse)
• Two players who competed for Canada’s National Women’s Team at the 2017 Four Nations Cup in Tampa, Fla. (Zandee-Hart, Potomak)

Tickets to the National Women’s Development Team Canada-USA series are available online now and start at $10, with ‘special experience’ packages available to minor hockey players. 

For more information on Hockey Canada and Canada’s National Women’s Program, please visit HockeyCanada.ca, or follow through social media on Facebook, Twitter, and Twitter.com/HC_Women.