If you haven't already read our tournament intro post, you should probably do that first. You'll find format and group information, plus how to watch.
Czechia
The Czechs engineered what is likely the biggest upset in U18 Women's World Championship history last tournament, taking down two-time defending champion and completely stacked Canada in the semifinals. Despite losing to the Americans in the final, they secured their first-ever silver medal and showed that the success at the senior level wasn't isolated.
They come back with 11 returners, but their very prolific and talented top line has all moved on as has goalie Aneta Šenková (all of whom are scheduled to start in the NCAA next season). It's impossible to replace that kind of talent (the top line scored 2/3 of the team's points and Šenková was goalie of the tournament) and the team as a whole has to focus on being the best they can be, not trying to recreate or be someone else. Their program has done such an amazing job in growth and development over the past few years and they need to trust in that and themselves to know that they can continue the tradition.
Five players on the roster - Julie Jebousková, Šarlota Stýblová, Tereza Gildainová, Adéla Pánková and Johanna Tischler - play at North American prep schools while Linda Vocetková is playing professionally in Sweden with Djurgårdens IF, but only two - Pánková (Northeastern) and Jebousková (Maine) - have committed to play collegiately in North America so far. The previous top line took much of the attention over the past few seasons and their departure leaves a massive opportunity for everyone on this team to take on bigger roles and show off for scouts. There were flashes of possibility with Magdaléna Felcmanová last season and I think this could be a big tournament for her. She's been playing professionally in Finland, giving her a comfort level with the area and the opponents. She's also 5'10" and seems to have grown more comfortable with her size and how to use it to her advantage, tripling her goal total already so far this season wiih Rovaniemi.
Canada
Chloe Primerano was the MVP of the 2024 tournament, leading everyone in scoring as a defender and setting a Canadian single-tournament scoring record and an IIHF single-tournament scoring record for a defender at the event. She graduated high school early to enroll at the University of Minnesota where she has three goals and eight assists in 16 games played. She is one of just five returning players on this Canadian team. That being said, there are just two players on this roster not yet committed to NCAA programs and all but one of these girls were part of the U18 Select Series this past summer.
Zablocki is a dynamic player whose speed has only increased since last season. She's aggressive, has great hands and it able to release in stride. She stood out last year and showed at Canada's U18 National Championship that she's only gotten better, being named Top Forward. Cimeroni was named MVP at that same tournament. Instead of having one or two parts of her game that stick out, she's a pretty complete player already at this age, standing out on an already stacked Ontario Red team. She's smart with the puck, not afraid to fight in the dirty areas and seems to always know where the puck is and where it's going. Marilou Grenier was on last year's roster, but did not see the ice. Now she's back and the presumptive starter. She'll remind people of Ann-Renée Desbiens in how active and acrobatic she can be.
Of the newcomers, Danica Maynard brings some of the best skating of anyone on either end of the ice. Dorothy Copetti uses her size and instincts to get into the right spot in front of the net for a tip, deflection or put back. She makes it difficult for opponents in front of the net.
Slovakia
The most recent U18 roster Slovakia has on their website doesn't include Nela Lopušanová or Ema Tóthová, though the Federation posted on Instagram that both would be taking part in the this tournament after having recently played with the senior National Team.
This is the team I'm most interested in watching over the course of the tournament. They struggled in 2024 with the new tournament alignment that had them playing the USA, Sweden and Finland instead of the old format with weighted groups where they were playing other teams ranked in the bottom half of the top eight. While they could physically keep up and skate with the top countries, what they struggled with was the lack of time and space to make decisions. They had pucks stripped, passes picked off and generally spent too much time thinking before acting. I think it was a big lesson in what it takes to compete at the top level and I'm hoping to see some big improvements from them in this area. The game has to come more naturally where the players are seeing the ice and how a play could develop before they even have the puck on their stick. For me, whether or not they've improved on this will tell me a lot about the state of women's hockey in Slovakia.
The player that lack of time and space affected most was Lopušanová, who had all but skated circles around players in 2023, when she was named tournament MVP but who was not prepared for the change and struggled a bit to adapt. I do not expect that to be a problem in this tournament and I'm excited to see what kind of stick work and magic she pulls off. At just 16 years old, she just led Slovakia's senior national team to the next stage of Olympic Qualifying by scoring 11 goals and 18 points in three games at her first major event at the senior women’s level.
Switzerland
The Swiss barely eked out a single win as hosts in 2024, defeating Germany 2-1 in the relegation game to keep their spot in the top tournament. They scored just five goals in five games while giving up 23. At both the senior and U18 level, Switzerland has struggled with depth and having enough high-level players to fill out the roster. The game simply is not growing domestically and their national teams are suffering. It was hoped that hosting this tournament last year would help spur that growth, but that's obviously not an immediate solution to the problem.
With 10 returners on this roster, they have the benefit of experience and the scorers of four of last year's goals are back this season. One of the standouts of the 2024 tournament overall for me was Sonja Inkamp. She was patient and tenacious - a steady force on defense who was a threat from distance on offense. She hasn't done much scoring in the year since, but I'm hoping to see some more great play from her. Naemi Herzig was not afraid to take shots last year and if she has managed to refine that at all, she'll be a threat this tournament. She's got an instinct for finding the lanes and after joining the senior national team at the last Women's World Championship she looks primed to be a leader for this squad that is highly in need of one.
