Get ready for another Canada-U.S. hockey showdown

Jesse Campigotto · CBC Sports

· Posted: Apr 08, 2025 4:25 PM EDT | Last Updated: 2 minutes ago

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Last year's women's hockey satellite title ended the mode beauteous overmuch each of them do, with different thrilling Canada-U.S. final. This time, improbable leader Danielle Serdachny's overtime extremity gave the Canadians a dramatic 6-5 win in Utica, N.Y, avenging the Americans' triumph successful 2023 successful Brampton, Ont.

Since the United States' tally of 5 consecutive satellite titles from 2013 to 2019 (the worlds are not held successful Olympic years), Canada has captured 3 of the past 4 portion besides reclaiming the Olympic golden medal successful 2022. The Canadians person besides won 4 consecutive Rivalry Series, taking the deciding Game 5 this February successful Summerside, P.E.I.

So, Canada intelligibly has the borderline close present successful this conflict of women's hockey superpowers. But it's a bladed one: six of the past 7 world-title games person been decided by a extremity (five of them successful overtime oregon a shootout) on with 3 consecutive Olympic gold-medal games (two successful OT oregon a shootout).

Here's what other to cognize up of the 2025 women's satellite championship, which opens Wednesday successful the Czech Republic.

Canada and the U.S. volition astir surely conscionable successful the last again.

We similar to deliberation that thing tin hap successful sports, but that's not truly existent for planetary women's hockey. Canada and the U.S. person present played each different successful 22 of the 23 women's satellite title finals (host Finland upset the Canadians successful the 2019 semis) and nary different state has ever won one. The cross-border archrivals person owned the Olympics too, gathering successful six of the 7 women's finals (Sweden shocked the Americans successful the 2006 semis) and winning each golden medal. That means 28 of the 30 large women's hockey championships successful past person ended with a Canada-U.S. final.

While a batch of sports fans look to similar parity, there's nary uncertainty that the Canada-U.S. rivalry has fixed america immoderate unforgettable moments implicit the years. Think of an enraged Hayley Wickenheiser accusing the Americans of trampling the Canadian flag before Canada's triumph successful the 2002 Olympic last successful Salt Lake City. Or the Canadian women gleefully chugging beers and puffing cigars connected the crystal aft capturing the golden successful Vancouver successful 2010. Or Canada's unthinkable comeback to triumph the classic 2014 Olympic rubric game in Sochi. Sometimes, familiarity breeds large theatre.

HOCKEY NORTH | Natalie Spooner previews Team Canada astatine the women's worlds:

It feels similar there's much connected the enactment this time.

As if the rivalry needs much affectional heft, this year's satellite title volition play retired against the backdrop of Donald Trump's infuriating commercialized warfare and annexation threats. We saw what these elements tin bash to a hockey crippled backmost successful February erstwhile Canada and the U.S. squared disconnected for a brace of highly affectional matchups astatine the NHL's 4 Nations Face-Off. The archetypal 1 began with fans successful Montreal booing the U.S. anthem, followed by three fights successful 9 seconds. The 2nd 1 started with Canadian-anthem jeering from the Boston assemblage and ended with Connor McDavid's cathartic overtime goal to triumph the tournament.

It's conscionable excessively atrocious the women's worlds are taking spot successful Europe and not successful beforehand of a profoundly nationalistic assemblage successful Canada oregon the United States, due to the fact that the fans' fury was a large portion of what made the 4 Nations truthful riveting.

Some players to watch:

Marie-Philip Poulin (Canada): The 34-year-old skipper was banged up heading into past year's worlds and did not people a extremity earlier the final. But her uncanny knack for clutch goals returned erstwhile her squad needed it most. Poulin's bar-down quality successful the 2nd play evened the people successful the world-title game, and she scored again successful the 3rd to enactment Canada successful the pb earlier Serdachny won it successful OT. Poulin presently leads the Professional Women's Hockey League with 17 goals successful 27 games this play for the Montreal Victoire.

Hilary Knight (United States): Poulin's reflector is the 35-year-old American skipper who scored a chapeau instrumentality successful the 2023 last to triumph her ninth vocation satellite title. Knight, the all-time person successful goals (65) and points (111) astatine the satellite championship, is besides inactive going beardown successful the PWHL. She leads the league with 28 points successful 27 games for the Boston Fleet.

Sarah Fillier (Canada): While inactive a pupil astatine Princeton University, Fillier scored 8 goals successful her Olympic debut successful 2022 and won the satellite title MVP grant successful 2023 by racking up 11 points successful 7 games. She went archetypal wide successful past year's PWHL draught and is close down Knight successful the scoring contention with 27 points this play for the New York Sirens.

Laila Edwards (United States): The MVP of past year's satellite title aft tying teammate Alex Carpenter for the tourney pb with six goals successful 7 games, Edwards is moving from guardant to defence to assistance the U.S. amended leverage her booming shot. The 21-year-old is coming disconnected an NCAA rubric with Wisconsin and was named a finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Award for subordinate of the year.

Natalie Spooner (Canada): The apical scorer and MVP of the PWHL's inaugural play missed the archetypal 2½ months of the existent run arsenic she recovered from the genu wounded that knocked her retired of the playoffs past May. Spooner, 34, has 5 points successful 11 games since returning to the Toronto Sceptres' lineup successful mid-February.

WATCH | Spooner is mic'd up:

Chloe Primerano (Canada): The MVP of the 2024 under-18 satellite title was named that tournament's champion defender again this twelvemonth aft helping Canada upgrade from bronze to golden by beating the U.S. successful the final. Primerano, an 18-year-old University of Minnesota freshman, made her elder nationalist squad debut successful November, scoring the shootout victor successful a Rivalry Series crippled against the United States. Here's much connected the rising star.

Tereza Vanisova (Czech Republic): The PWHL's apical non-North American scorer is tied with Knight for 2nd successful the league successful goals with 15 and ranks 10th successful points with 20. Last year, Vanisova helped the Czechs scope their 3rd consecutive bronze-medal game, which they mislaid to Finland successful a shootout.

Canada's schedule:

The defending champs unfastened Thursday astatine 1 p.m. ET against Finland and look Switzerland connected Friday astatine 9 a.m. ET earlier their preliminary-round clash with the U.S. connected Sunday astatine 1 p.m. ET. Canada past wraps up its round-robin slate against the Czech Republic connected Monday astatine 1 p.m. ET. TSN is showing the games.

How the tourney works:

All 5 teams successful Canada's radical are guaranteed a spot successful the quarterfinals connected April 17. They'll beryllium joined by the apical 3 finishers from the different (weaker) group, made up of Germany, Sweden, Japan, Hungary and Norway. Russia remains banned from planetary hockey owed to the penetration of Ukraine.

Barring a large surprise, Canada and the U.S. volition play successful abstracted semifinals connected April 19 earlier squaring disconnected successful the last again connected April 20.

For much connected the satellite championship, here's a look astatine the Canadian team from CBC Sports' Karissa Donkin.