The 2026 IIHF Women’s World Championship represents a changing of the guard for Team Canada.
With new general manager Danièle Sauvageau and head coach Kori Cheverie now at the helm, seven players will make their debuts for Canada at the upcoming tournament in Denmark, including a pair of 18-year-old forwards in Rosalie Tremblay and Hayley McDonald.
Watch Canada take on Sweden at the Women’s Worlds in their tournament opener on Friday, Nov. 6 at 9 a.m. ET on TSN1 and streaming on TSN.ca and the TSN App.
The change comes after Canada’s veteran-heavy Olympic roster earned silver in Milan in February, losing to a United States squad that prioritized a youth movement after the Americans took home Olympic silver in 2022.
Canada, who is also the reigning silver medalist at the worlds, is now looking to do the same as a new four-year cycle ahead of the 2030 Olympics begins.
Four of the new faces are skating in the NCAA this season with three others in the PWHL, including Ottawa Charge forward Rebecca Leslie getting her first shot with the senior national team at age 30.
Here’s a look at the seven players representing Canada at the Women’s Worlds in Herning and Esberg, Denmark from Nov. 6 to 16.
Caitlin Kraemer – Forward
Now in her third NCAA season at the University of Minnesota-Duluth, Kraemer was named one of the co-captains of the squad this year alongside senior defender Ida Karlsson.
Kraemer scored 18 goals with 31 points in 39 games in her first season, earning National Rookie of the Year honours. This season, the 20-year-old has seven goals with nine points in six games.
Kraemer played in two U18 tournaments where she was a goal-scoring machine, scoring 10 goals at both the 2023 and 2024 events.
She was named to the tournament All-Star team after winning gold in 2023 and then was a part of the team that took bronze in 2024.
Kraemer most notably broke Marie-Philip Poulin’s Canadian goal-scoring records at the tournament in both a single tournament (10) and all time (20).
She and Team Canada defender Chloe Primerano, along with Seattle Torrent second-overall pick Abbey Murphy, were invited to join the Edmonton Oilers development camp at the end of June as they skated alongside the organization’s prospects.
Sara Manness - Forward
Manness is in her second season at Clarkson University, where she has eight goals with 13 points in eight games.
As a rookie in 2025-26, the 19-year-old scored 21 goals with 52 points in 35 games, finishing sixth in the NCAA in scoring. She was named a co-winner of the National Rookie of the Year along with Ohio State’s Hilda Svensson.
She previously represented Canada at two U18 tournaments. She won bronze in 2024 with three assists in six games before returning in 2025, where she had two goals with nine points in six games to help Canada win gold.
TSN Hockey analyst Cheryl Pounder said she is impressed that the new management group decided to include Manness on the roster.
“She’s been outstanding in the NCAA but I love her skillset,” said Pounder of Manness. “She’s extremely skilled but she also has incredible IQ, so she’s got the smarts to play with top players.
“She’s got to be one that’s creating offence and creating for her linemates. I really like that they brought her in, but it was the recognition of the talent and what she brings, which is different. This has been a very linear team, a hard-working team. She brings a cerebral element that will be really welcomed to this roster.”
Rosalie Tremblay – Forward
Tremblay is the youngest player to suit up for the senior national team since Poulin in 2009 as one of two 18-year-olds on the roster.
The Sherbrooke, Que., native is in the midst of her rookie season at the University of Wisconsin, where she has six goals with nine points in six games this season. She scored four goals with one assist in a 12-1 win over Minnesota State-Mankato on Oct. 17.
She has appeared in two U18 world championships for Canada, winning gold in 2025 and silver in 2026.
Hayley McDonald – Forward
The other 18-year-old on the team is McDonald, who is in her rookie season at the Ohio State University.
McDonald captained Canada at the 2026 U18s, where she scored six goals with nine points in six games as the team earned silver.
She has one goal with three points in eight games with the Buckeyes this season.
Rebecca Leslie - Forward
Leslie had a massive 2025-26 season with the PWHL’s Ottawa Charge, leading her to a spot with the senior national team.
She scored 14 goals with 23 points in 30 regular-season games last season before chipping in four goals with six points in eight playoff games as she helped the Charge make the PWHL Walter Cup Finals for a second straight year.
“We’ve seen in the PWHL playoffs, she’s a clutch player,” said TSN Montreal Reporter Kenzie Lalonde of Leslie. “And with no Marie-Philip Poulin, you’re going to need those scorers, players that can finish, and Rebecca Leslie does that.”
The Ottawa native played four years at Boston University before spending one year in the Canadian Women’s League with Calgary, winning a championship with the Inferno before the league folded. She skated with the PWHPA and spent the inaugural PWHL season with Toronto before landing with her hometown team in 2024.
Leslie won gold with the U18 team in 2014, where she had two goals and five points in five games.
Sarah Wozniewicz – Forward
A third-round pick (21st overall) by the Charge in 2025, Wozniewicz jumped right into the fray as a rookie, scoring seven goals with 13 points in 30 games last season before chipping in with four points in eight postseason contests.
Wozniewicz won two national championships during her four years at the University of Wisconsin, with her best season coming as a senior, when she had nine goals with 21 points in 41 games.
The 23-year-old signed a three-year extension with the Charge on July 11.
She last suited up for Canada at the 2020 U18s, helping her country earn silver.
Kendall Cooper – Defence
The lone new face on the blueline for Canada at this year’s Women’s Worlds is Las Vegas defender Kendall Cooper.
After spending five seasons at Quinnipiac University, Cooper made the jump to the PWHL when she was drafted sixth overall by the Minnesota Frost in 2025.
In her rookie season with the Frost, Cooper scored two goals with 19 points in 30 games and appeared in five playoff games before Minnesota was eliminated in the semifinals by the eventual champion Montreal Victoire.
Cooper skated at the U18s twice, winning gold in 2019 and silver in 2020 as she was named to the tournament All-Star team.
She signed a two-year contract with the PWHL Las Vegas team on June 6 as one of the franchise’s first-ever signings after she was left unprotected in the expansion draft by the Frost.
“You’re not always going to watch her and say, ‘Well there’s the flash, there it is,’ because she’s going to be on the right side of the puck,” said Pounder of Cooper. “She’s going to take calculated risks offensively. But she’s solid defensively, she’s a smooth skater and I think this is the type of player that the ‘D’ core needs. Someone who can stabilize but also has IQ, has presence, isn’t afraid to play with an edge.”