USA Hockey today announced the 23-player roster for its U.S. Under-18 Women’s National Team that will compete for its fifth consecutive gold medal at the 2019 International Ice Hockey Federation Under-18 Women’s World Championship Jan. 6-13 in Obihiro, Japan.
"We have a strong core of returning players who know what it takes to succeed on the world stage, as well as some really bright, young talent and we're excited to see what they can do together," said Maura Crowell (Mansfield, Mass.), head coach of the 2019 U.S. Under-18 Women's National Team and also the head women's ice hockey coach at the University of Minnesota Duluth. "We're looking forward to what will certainly be an exciting tournament in Japan next month."
The roster features nine players that helped the U.S. earn gold at last year’s IIHF Under-18 Women’s World Championship in Dmitrov, Russia, including Hannah Bilka (Coppell, Texas), Hadley Hartmetz (Phoenixville, Pa.), Katy Knoll (Amherst, N.Y.), Abbey Murphy (Evergreen Park, Ill.), Maggie Nicholson (Minnetonka, Minn.), Casey O'Brien (Milton, Mass.), Dominique Petrie (Hermosa Beach, Calif.), Sydney Shearen (Hugo, Minn.) and Makenna Webster (St. Louis, Mo.). Eighteen players also participated in the 2018 Under-18 Series vs. Canada last August in Calgary, Alberta.
The roster includes 12 forwards, eight defenders and three goaltenders that represent 15 different states. Minnesota leads the pack with five representatives, followed by New York (4) and Michigan (2). In addition, Alaska, California, Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas each have one.
A camp will be held in Los Angeles Dec. 28-Jan. 2 before the team departs to Japan. For complete coverage of Team USA in the lead up to and during the 2019 IIHF Under-18 Women’s World Championship, please click here.
To view the full roster, including team staff, please click here.
NOTES: Joining Crowell as assistant coaches for the 2019 U.S. Under-18 Women's National Team are Brianna Decker (Dousman, Wis.), member of the gold medal-winning 2018 U.S. Olympic Women's Ice Hockey Team, and Josh Sciba (Westland, Mich.), head women's ice hockey coach at Union College... The IIHF Under-18 Women's World Championship will be played for the 12th time in 2019 and will include teams from Canada, the Czech Republic, Finland, Japan, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States... Team USA, the four-time reigning world champion, captured gold in each of the first two years of the tournament (2008, 2009) and again in 2011, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018. The team has taken home the silver medal in 2010, 2012, 2013 and 2014... USA Hockey’s international council, chaired by Gavin Regan (Potsdam, N.Y.), vice president of USA Hockey, has oversight responsibilities for all U.S. teams that compete internationally.
2019 U.S. Tournament Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Time (Local/ET)/RESULT | VENUE | LOCATION | Stream/U.S. Player Of The Game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun., Jan. 6 | Russia Preliminary |
W, 3-2 | Obihiro Forest Ice Arena | Obihiro, Japan | Hannah Bilka |
| Mon., Jan. 7 | Canada Preliminary |
W, 3-2 | Obihiro Forest Ice Arena | Obihiro, Japan | Abbey Murphy |
| Wed., Jan. 9 | Sweden Preliminary |
W, 2-0 | Obihiro Forest Ice Arena | Obihiro, Japan | Skylar Vetter |
| Sat., Jan. 12 | Finland Semifinals |
W, 7-1 | Obihiro Forest Ice Arena | Obihiro, Japan | Katy Knoll |
| Sun., Jan. 13 | Canada Gold-Medal Game |
L, 2-3 OT | Obihiro Forest Ice Arena | Obihiro, Japan | Makenna Webster |
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