With the 2026 Winter Olympics starting, Team Canada finalized and publicized their official women’s ice hockey roster on January 9. The roster features 16 former Olympians, part of a Canadian team that went 7–0 in games and defeated the USA 3–2 in regulation to win gold in Beijing four years ago. 

Two impactful players for the Beijing 2022 team, forwards Sarah Nurse and Marie-Philip Poulin, are among the former Olympians selected for Milano-Cortina. 

Nurse led the Beijing team with 18 points, setting a tournament record. She made a tangible impact in the final push for the gold medal, gaining a goal and an assist in the final match against the USA. 

Since Beijing, Nurse played with the PWHL’s Toronto Sceptres for two seasons (2023–2024 and 2024–2025), where she was second in points across the league at the end of the former. During the 2024–2025 season, Nurse missed nine games and had 14 points, 28th overall in the PWHL. 

She joined the Vancouver Goldeneyes in the 2025 PWHL expansion. After suffering an arm injury in her first game of the 2025–2026 regular season, Nurse missed significant playing time. She returned to the ice on January 17, notably scoring two goals in a 5–0 shutout over the Sceptres on January 22. 

A seasoned veteran of international competition, Milano-Cortina will be Poulin’s fifth time at the Olympics. She finished close to Nurse on Team Canada in terms of points at Beijing (17, second on the team), with two important goals and an assist in the gold medal match. 

As of January 26, 2026, Poulin, who plays on the Montréal Victoire in the PWHL, is currently seventh in the league in points (14). She finished fourth overall in the 2024–2025 season with 26. One of two Canadian players ahead of Poulin in PWHL points (15) is forward Brianne Jenner, who was also named to Canada’s 2026 Olympic roster. 

Other notable names include forwards Natalie Spooner, Laura Stacey, Blayre Turnbull, and Emily Clark, and defence Jocelyne Larocque, all for whom Milano-Cortina will be their third or fourth return to the Winter Olympics.

On the goaltending side, the strategy emphasizing international competitive experience and consistent, strong playing remains. Ann-Renee Desbiens, who is currently third in the PWHL in save average stats (an impressive 0.951 per cent in 12 games played), was named to the roster alongside Emerance Maschmeyer (0.930 per cent in 12 games played). Both were part of the gold medal-winning team for Beijing 2022. 

Alongside the two returning Olympians on the goaltending roster is Kayle Osborne. Unlike many of the other selected players, Osborne did not appear on the roster for the 2025 International Ice Hockey Federation’s (IIHF) Women’s World Championship, though this is her first Olympic Games. Osborne is a goalie for the PWHL’s New York Sirens, where she has a 0.922 per cent save average in 14 games played. She is tied for second in wins among PWHL goalies (seven). 

Other first-time Olympians selected for Team Canada include defence Sophie Jaques, who currently plays for the current PWHL champions, the Minnesota Frost, and forward Julia Gosling with the Toronto Sceptres. Jaques played in her first major international competition during the 2025 IIHF Women’s World Championship. Gosling currently has 12 points in the PWHL, tied for fourth overall. She played in the 2025 and 2024 IIHF World Tournaments. 

The Milano-Cortina roster doesn’t feature many significant changes from the 2025 IIHF World Championship, where Canada suffered a 4–3 overtime loss to the USA in the finals, ultimately taking silver. To potentially go back-to-back at the Olympics this February, Team Canada’s main drive will need to be beating a USA team that they struggled to overcome last year. 

On their own roster, the USA has named defence Lee Stecklein and forward Taylor Heise, who were important parts of their 2025 IIHF victory. Alongside them is forward Kendall Coyne Schofield, who currently leads the PWHL in points (16) and goalscoring (10). Schofield herself will be marking her fourth return to the Winter Olympics at Milano-Cortina. 

Beating the USA is no easy feat, but it is one Team Canada has accomplished before. In the November 2025 Rivalry Series, which again featured many players headed to the 2026 Winter Games, Canada overcame the US, going 3–2 in a five-game series, winning the deciding match 3–1. For Team Canada, forwards Laura Stacey, Blayre Turnbull, and Emma Maltais led in points, all of whom will be headed to Milan-Cortina. 

The women named to Team Canada for Milano-Cortina are chock-full of competitiveness and experience playing at an international level. Team Canada has built a roster where success is consistently there, having been proven previously (both at the Olympic level and at the World Championships). They have also been sure to trust in younger players, particularly those who have still competed at the international level. 

What Canada is looking for is confidence in its playmaking, a solid foundation. Whether it will push them to the top, to gold, we’ll be anticipating.