CALGARY, ALBERTA – Canada’s National Women’s Olympic centralized hockey team trimmed its roster to 26 players on Wednesday.

Twenty year old forward Ashley Riggs (Pickering, ON) was released from the centralized group by Head Coach Melody Davidson and Canada's coaching staff. 

Today’s announcement leaves the team with 26 players on the centralized roster, which includes three (3) goaltenders, eight (8) defensemen, and fifteen (15) forwards. Davidson and the coaching staff continue to evaluate and prepare its team for the 2006 Winter Olympic Games as they train full-time in Calgary.  Canada has to trim its roster down to 20 players prior to the start of the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy in February. Canada will open the 2006 Olympics against Italy on February 11.

Canada's women's hockey team has played 15 games of a 46 game schedule since centralizing on August 1st and have a record of 11-3-1. The next international competition slated for Team Canada is the Torino Ice Tournament featuring Canada, Sweden, Finland, and the USA from November 7-12 in Torino, Italy.

Canada is the defending Olympic women’s hockey champion, having won gold at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah.