After sweeping the November pair of games at the Rivalry Series, the United States will look to continue its winning ways in the next set of games in the series. The series shifts to Canada for the next four games, including two this month. Teams will play at Kitchener Memorial Auditorium in Kitchener, Ontario on Thursday, December 14 at 7:00 PM Eastern, then at Progressive Auto Sales Arena in Sarnia, Ontario on Saturday, December 16 at 5:00 PM Eastern. Both games will be broadcast on NHL Network.
As of writing, fewer than 50 tickets remain for Thursday's game in Kitchener. Only standing room is available for Saturday's game in Sarnia.
Looking Back at November
The United States handily won both games in November with 3-1 and 5-2 victories. In the first game, the United States scored first, then added two unanswered goals in the third period. Aerin Frankel made 35 saves. The second game of the series started with the teams trading goals before the United States took a 3-1 lead in the second period. Although Canada tried to rally in the third, two more goals against in the final frame sent them home defeated. Nicole Hensley made 23 saves.
Canada Roster
There have been multiple changes to Canada's roster from the November games. Jamie Lee Rattray (1G), Erin Ambrose, Jessie Eldridge, Sarah Fillier (1A), and Corinne Schroeder are all off the roster. In their place are: Anne Cherkowski, Danielle Serdachny, Jennifer Gardiner, Loren Gabel, Nicole Gosling, and Ann-Renée Desbiens.
Cherkowski, a junior at Clarkson, has recorded 19 points (10G, 9A) in 20 games. She led the team with 52 points in 40 games last season. This will be her first time playing with the senior national team after being with the Canadian U18 squad in 2019 and 2020.
Serdachny is in her fifth year at Colgate after captaining the team last year, and she already has 30 points in 17 games this season. She was with Team Canada at Worlds earlier this year, winning silver and tallying 1 assist.
Gardiner is in her fifth season at Ohio State and leads the team with 23 points. In 2019 she appeared with the U18 national team, winning the gold medal that year at Worlds.
Gabel will sport the maple leaf for the first time since Worlds in 2019. She spent last season with the PHF's Boston Pride, led the team with 40 points (20G, 20A) in 22 games, and is set to play with PWHL Boston come January.
Gosling is in her senior year at Clarkson and has 22 points in 20 games from the backend; she last suited up for Team Canada at U18s in 2020, winning gold that year.
The veteran Desbiens spent last season in the PWHPA and had a 2.07 GAA and .935 save percentage in 13 games with Team Harvey's; she's set to play with PWHL Montreal in 2024.
In addition, Emerance Maschmeyer is injured. She's being replaced by Kayle Osborne from Colgate University. Osborne has played the lion's share for the Raiders, with a 1.16 GAA and .946 save percentage in 14 games this season. She was with the Canadian U18 team that won silver at Worlds in 2020.
Stats listed are for the November Rivalry Series games. Players listed in bold also played in the November series.
| NO. | NAME | POS. | DOB | S/C | CURRENT TEAM/ RIGHTS | GP | G | A | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 72 | Anne Cherkowski | F | 7/6/2002 | R | Clarkson University | 0 | |||
| 21 | Ashton Bell | D | 12/7/1999 | R | Ottawa (PWHL) | 2 | |||
| 40 | Blayre Turnbull | F | 7/15/1993 | R | Toronto (PWHL) | 2 | |||
| 19 | Brianne Jenner | F | 5/4/1991 | R | Ottawa (PWHL) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 92 | Danielle Serdachny | F | 5/12/2001 | R | Colgate University | 0 | |||
| 17 | Ella Shelton | D | 1/19/1998 | L | New York (PWHL) | 2 | |||
| 26 | Emily Clark | F | 11/28/1995 | L | Ottawa (PWHL) | 2 | |||
| 27 | Emma Maltais | F | 11/4/1999 | L | Toronto (PWHL) | 2 | |||
| 25 | Jaime Bourbonnais | D | 9/9/1998 | R | New York (PWHL) | 2 | |||
| 41 | Jennifer Gardiner | F | 9/18/2001 | L | Ohio State University | 0 | |||
| 3 | Jocelyne Larocque | D | 5/19/1988 | L | Toronto (PWHL) | 2 | |||
| 88 | Julia Gosling | F | 2/21/2001 | L | St. Lawrence Univ. | 2 | |||
| 43 | Kristin O’Neill | F | 3/30/1998 | L | Montreal (PWHL) | 2 | |||
| 7 | Laura Stacey | F | 5/5/1994 | R | Montreal (PWHL) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 36 | Loren Gabel | F | 7/24/1997 | L | Boston (PWHL) | 0 | |||
| 29 | Marie-Philip Poulin | F | 3/28/1991 | L | Montreal (PWHL) | 2 | |||
| 61 | Nicole Gosling | D | 4/21/2002 | L | Clarkson University | 0 | |||
| 14 | Renata Fast | D | 10/6/1994 | R | Toronto (PWHL) | 2 | |||
| 20 | Sarah Nurse | F | 1/4/1995 | L | Toronto (PWHL) | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | Sophie Jaques | F | 10/16/2000 | R | Boston (PWHL) | 1 | |||
| TBA | Kayle Osborne | G | 2/28/2002 | L | Colgate University | 0 | |||
| 50 | Kristen Campbell | G | 11/30/1997 | L | Toronto (PWHL) | 1 | 24 SVS | 5 GA | 5.00 GAA |
| 35 | Ann-Renee Desbiens | G | 4/10/1994 | L | Montreal (PWHL) | 0 |
United States Roster
There are a few changes to the United States roster, though it largely remains the same as it was in November. Natalie Buchbinder & Becca Gilmore are out, with Caroline Harvey, Kirsten Simms, and Ally Simpson stepping in.
Harvey, a defender, has 20 points – including 18 assists – with Wisconsin this season in just 11 games. The sophomore, who led the entire Women's Worlds tournament in points earlier this year (4 goals, 10 assists in 7 games), has been dealing with some injuries recently but looks to be healthy again.
Simms, her teammate on the Badgers, has already surpassed her freshman year point total (32) with 34 points (15 goals, 19 assists) in just 17 games. This will be her senior national team debut after winning the gold medal with the U18 team in 2022.
Simpson, who is in her fifth season at Colgate, has 14 points (2G, 12A) in 17 games. She captained the team last year and had 32 points in 40 games, including 27 assists. This will be her senior national team debut as well after having last played with Team USA on the U18 team in 2018, which won gold that year.
Stats listed are for the November Rivalry Series games. Players listed in bold also played in the November series.
| NO. | NAME | POS. | DOB | S/C | CURRENT TEAM/RIGHTS | GP | G | A | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Cayla Barnes | D | 1/7/1999 | R | Ohio State University | 2 | |||
| 23 | Hannah Bilka | F | 3/24/2001 | L | Ohio State University | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 25 | Alex Carpenter | F | 4/13/1994 | L | PWHL New York | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| 17 | Britta Curl | F | 3/20/2000 | L | University of Wisconsin | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 | Lacey Eden | F | 5/2/2002 | R | University of Wisconsin | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 14 | Laila Edwards | F | 1/25/2004 | R | University of Wisconsin | 1 | |||
| 6 | Rory Guilday | D | 9/7/2002 | L | Cornell University | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 15 | Savannah Harmon | D | 10/27/1995 | L | PWHL Ottawa | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 4 | Caroline Harvey | D | 10/14/2002 | L | University of Wisconsin | 0 | |||
| 27 | Taylor Heise | F | 3/17/2000 | R | PWHL Minnesota | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 36 | Gabbie Hughes | F | 10/4/1999 | L | PWHL Ottawa | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 22 | Tessa Janecke | F | 5/12/2004 | L | Penn State University | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 5 | Megan Keller | D | 5/1/1996 | L | PWHL Boston | 2 | |||
| 21 | Hilary Knight | F | 7/12/1989 | R | PWHL Boston | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| 37 | Abbey Murphy | F | 4/14/2002 | R | University of Minnesota | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 12 | Kelly Pannek | F | 12/29/1995 | R | PWHL Minnesota | 2 | |||
| 11 | Abby Roque | F | 9/25/1997 | R | PWHL New York | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 16 | Hayley Scamurra | F | 12/14/1994 | L | PWHL Ottawa | 2 | |||
| 9 | Kirsten Simms | F | 8/31/2004 | R | University of Wisconsin | 0 | |||
| 19 | Ally Simpson | D | 12/20/2000 | R | Colgate University | 0 | |||
| 38 | Anna Wilgren | D | 11/11/1999 | L | University of Wisconsin | 0 | |||
| 8 | Haley Winn | D | 7/14/2003 | R | Clarkson University | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 13 | Grace Zumwinkle | F | 4/23/1999 | R | PWHL Minnesota | 2 | |||
| 31 | Aerin Frankel | G | 5/24/1999 | L | PWHL Boston | 1 | 35 SVS | 1 GA | 1.00 GAA |
| 29 | Nicole Hensley | G | 6/23/1994 | L | PWHL Minnesota | 1 | 23 SVS | 2 GA | 2.00 GAA |
| 30 | Abbey Levy | G | 4/2/2000 | L | PWHL New York | 0 |
Predictions?
This week's iteration of the Rivalry Series should be a great one. Many of these players have been practicing and participating in preseason action with their respective PWHL teams over the past few weeks. This series will give them one last chance to play with one another before they're split back up into their respective PWHL teams prior to the season's start in January.
With a few roster changes on both sides, these games will have a slightly different look from November's pair. Both teams are using the opportunity to roster some younger players who haven't yet had the opportunity to play with the senior national team.
Expect Canada to come out strong as they look for their first win of the 2023-24 Rivalry Series, and expect more offensive push from top players like Poulin and Nurse. The U.S. has already seen a fair share of offense from across the board, so expect a variety of players to continue to step up and get involved.
The Rivalry Series picks back up in February for three games: February 7 (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan); February 9 (Regina, Saskatchewan), and February 11 (St. Paul, Minnesota).