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October 3, 2007
NR.128
CALGARY – Peter Smith, head coach of the National Women’s Team, along with Melody Davidson, general
manager of Canada’s National Women’s Team, announced on Wednesday Canada’s 22-player roster for the 4 Nations
Cup from November 7-11 in Leksand, Sweden.
The Canadian roster is the first of three distinct rosters that will be announced during the 2007-08
season. Players who aren’t on the 4 Nations Cup roster are still eligible for both the January Evaluation
Camp (January 20-27 in Calgary, AB) and the 2008 IIHF World Women’s Hockey Championship (April 4-13 in
Harbin, China).
Over the course of the 2007-08 season, Canada will put together three distinct National Women’s Team
rosters. Each roster will be selected by the coaching staff, in consultation with Davidson and Wally Kozak,
Hockey Canada’s head scout for National Women’s Teams, based on evaluations of a large pool of players
throughout 2007-08.
Team Canada’s coaching and scouting staffs will watch players at various events, including the 4 Nations
Cup, the National Team January Evaluation Camp, the National Women’s Under-18 Championship (November 7-11 in
Kitchener, ON), the IIHF World Women’s Under-18 Championship (January 7-12 in Calgary, AB), the Air Canada
Cup Women’s Under-22 Tournament (December 31, 2007 to January 7, 2008 in Germany), and with their respective
club teams.
“Our staff will be watching the progress of several players this season, as we lead into the 2008 IIHF
World Women’s Hockey Championship,” says Smith. “With three major events in 2007-08, some veterans will not
be named to a roster to give us a good look at other candidates. Whether they are on this roster or not, we
will continue to monitor and evaluate a large group of players that could represent Canada at the 2008
Women’s Worlds.”
Team Canada’s roster includes 13 members of the team that won gold at the 2007 IIHF World Women’s Hockey
Championship in Manitoba. Eight players from that gold medal winning team in 2007 are not on the 4 Nations
Cup roster but are still eligible for both the January Evaluation Camp and the 2008 IIHF World Women’s Hockey
Championship: Tessa Bonhomme, Cathy Chartrand, Danielle Goyette, Annie Guay, Charline Labonté, Carla MacLeod,
Kim St-Pierre and Vicky Sunohara. A ninth player from the 2007 Women’s Worlds team, Cheryl Pounder, has taken
the 2007-08 season off to start her family.
Five players on the 4 Nations Cup roster – Valérie Chouinard (Matane, QC/Mercyhurst, CHA), Martine Garland
(Toronto, ON/Univ. of New Hampshire, HE), Rebecca Johnston (Sudbury, ON/Cornell, ECAC), Bobbi Jo Slusar
(Swift Current, SK/Univ. of Wisconsin, WCHA), and Jennifer Wakefield (Pickering, ON/Etobicoke, NWHL) – have
never played at the 4 Nations Cup or the IIHF World Women’s Hockey Championship. Johnston was an alternate
for Team Canada at the 2007 Women’s Worlds.
“The 4 Nations Cup is a very valuable part of our evaluation process,” says Davidson. “We expect intense
competition in Sweden. The coaching staff has assembled a group with a good blend of youth and experience,
and we look forward to a successful event in Leksand.”
» 2007 4 Nations Cup | Schedule/Results
» CAN 4N Roster
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