CALGARY, Alberta – Hockey Canada has announced the 23 players who have been named to Canada’s National Women’s Team for the third and fourth games of the 2023-24 Rivalry Series, set for Dec. 14 and Dec. 16 in Kitchener and Sarnia, Ontario, respectively.

Three goaltenders, seven defence and 13 forwards were selected by general manager Gina Kingsbury (Rouyn-Noranda, QC/Toronto, PWHL), head coach Troy Ryan (Spryfield, NS/Toronto, PWHL) and Cherie Piper (Scarborough, ON), senior manager of player development and scouting. Assistant coaches Kori Cheverie (New Glasgow, NS/Montréal, PWHL), Caroline Ouellette (Montréal, QC/Concordia University, RSEQ), Courtney Kessel (Mississauga, ON/Boston, PWHL) and Rachel Flanagan (Pontypool, ON/Toronto, PWHL), and goaltending consultant Brad Kirkwood (Calgary, AB/Toronto, PWHL) also provided input.

“We are thrilled to announce the 23 players who will wear the Maple Leaf as we continue the Rivalry Series in Kitchener and Sarnia in December,” Kingsbury said. “These two games provide our group with another opportunity to evaluate our pool of athletes and continue to build the pieces needed to have success at the World Championship in Utica in April. Every opportunity we have to come together is an opportunity to build, and we look forward to the competition and we are excited about playing in front of Canadian crowds in Ontario.”

The roster features 17 players who suited up at the Rivalry Series in Tempe, Arizona, and Los Angeles, California, in November (Bell, Bourbonnais, Campbell, Clark, Fast, Julia Gosling, Jaques, Jenner, Larocque, Maltais, Maschmeyer, Nurse, O’Neill, Poulin, Shelton, Stacey, Turnbull), as well as three players who are set to make their debut with Canada’s National Women’s Team (Cherkowski, Gardiner, Nicole Gosling).

The Rivalry Series continues at the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium on Dec. 14 at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT, followed by a stop at Progressive Auto Sales Arena in Sarnia on Dec. 16 at 5 p.m. ET/2 p.m. PT. The teams will travel west in February, with the final three games of the series being played in Saskatoon on Feb. 7, Regina on Feb. 9 and St. Paul, Minnesota, on Feb. 11.

TSN and RDS, the official broadcast partners of Hockey Canada, will broadcast all seven Rivalry Series games; please check local listings for details. Media wishing to attend the games in Kitchener and Sarnia must fill out the online accreditation form.

Tickets for all four Rivalry Series games in Canada are on sale now at HockeyCanada.ca/Tickets, and are available starting under $30.

This year’s Rivalry Series marks the fifth year the cross-border rivals will face-off in cities across Canada and the United States. Canada’s National Women’s Team dropped the opening two games of the 2023-24 series earlier this month, giving Canada an 11-12 record in 23 games since the inception of the Rivalry Series in 2018-19.

For more information on Hockey Canada and Canada’s National Women’s Team, please visit HockeyCanada.ca, or follow along via social media on Facebook, X and Instagram.