SAGUENAY, Que. – The 2011 National Women’s Under-18 Championship is set to begin Wednesday, Nov. 2 at the Arena Georges-Vézina in Saguenay, Que., with eight provincial and regional teams taking the ice with hopes of winning gold.

The National Women’s Under-18 Championship is an important event for Hockey Canada scouts, who will use the tournament to help select Canada’s team for the 2012 IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s U18 World Championship, Dec. 31 to Jan. 7 in Zlin and Prerov, Czech Republic. The rosters for the national championship include 21 of the 22 players who were part of Canada’s National Women’s Under-18 Team for its three-game series against the United States in Rockland, Ont., in August.

"All 34 players at camp battled hard, fought for their spots and left us with some tough decisions," said Hodgins. "As a coaching staff, we are confident we have selected the 22 players who give us the best chance at improving on last year's silver medal finish."

Of the 23 players named to Canada’s National Women’s Team for the 2011 4 Nations Cup, 19 are alumnae of the National Women’s Under-18 Championship, including 2010 Olympic gold medallists Meghan Agosta, Gillian Apps, Haley Irwin, Rebecca Johnston and Marie-Philip Poulin.  

The tournament kicks off with four games Wednesday, including six-time defending champion Ontario Red taking on Manitoba at 5 p.m. ET and host Quebec meeting Ontario Blue at 8 p.m. ET in a rematch of Ontario Blue’s thrilling 1-0 shootout win in a 2009 semifinal.

The teams have been split into two groups, with each team to play three preliminary round games. The top two teams from each group will advance to the semifinals, with the gold medal game set to air on TSN/RDS, Hockey Canada’s official broadcaster, on Sunday, Nov. 6. All games, excluding the gold medal game, can be seen live via webcast through hockeycanada.fasthockey.com.

Full-tournament, 16-game ticket packages are now available for just $30. Packages include all 12 preliminary round games, both semifinals, the bronze medal game and gold medal game. For more information on tickets, CLICK HERE.

Francis Dupont, Hockey Canada’s manager of media relations and communications, will be on site for the tournament. For interview request and media accreditation, please contact him at 587-999-5681 or [email protected].

For more information on the 2011 National Women’s Under-18 Championship, visit www.HockeyCanada.ca/NWU18C, or follow along through social media at www.facebook.com/womensu18 and www.twitter.com/hc_nwu18.